Early bulbs should still survive winter

I’m certain you have noticed the unseasonably warm winter weather we have been experiencing. In some ways it is fantastic. Outdoor work is much easier when the temperature is above 40 degrees. Everything from stacking wood to taking out the trash is simplified when the tips of your fingers can be felt. It’s nice that the kids can play outside and the furnace doesn’t kick on nearly as often.

With warmer temperatures, however, what would be snow has been rain, and lots of it. With the rain comes the mud and the canines in residence do not grasp the concept of wiping ones paws prior to entering the house. Come to think of it, the humans in the house don’t grasp that concept very well either.

Every once in a while the temperature will drop and it will seem like winter for a few days. We might pick up a little snow that brings out the complainers who, no matter how efficiently the streets are cleared by diligent workers anxiously waiting to stimulate the economy by spending their overtime pay, will find fault in the higher level decision making involving the various aspects of snow removal.

And then the temperatures climb again only to melt the snow that days earlier had everyone in a panic. We have the calendar to tell us that it is, indeed, still winter, but the spring bulbs are a bit confused. They can only react to what is happening around them. Warm air and soil is telling them it is time to come out of dormancy and begin growing.

As February is just beginning, it is safe to say more winter weather is on the way. It is highly unlikely the bulbs you see making their way through the soil right now will form flower buds just yet. In fact, they will likely return to dormancy with the next wave of frigid air.

You might notice the green turns to yellow and dies back. There is no reason to worry your spring bulbs will not flower beautifully at their regular bloom time if this occurs.

In the unlikely event you do see buds developing, you can take precautions to ensure they will not be lost to the cold. A layer of mulch, dry leaves, sawdust or what have you should be sufficient in keeping the bulbs and their buds safe from freezing. As the air warms, the mulch can be removed and the bulbs should continue to grow and flower beautifully.

It’s important to understand the difference between weather and climate when deciding what and when to plant various species in the yard and garden. One unseasonably warm winter does not mean we can start growing tropicals as perennials in Ohio.

Weather is the day-to-day state of the atmosphere. Weather is thought of as the combination of temperature, humidity, precipitation, cloudiness, visibility and wind. It is also one of the more popular ways to get a conversation started.

Climate, on the other hand, is defined as statistical weather information that describes the variation of weather at a given location for a specified interval, usually 30 years.

The United States Department of Agriculture climate zones are based on measurements from the Commerce Department’s National Climatic Data Center, plus national sources in Canada and Mexico. Every 10 years the data center calculates new 30-year average values. These values can be very useful to both farmers and gardeners when deciding what plants will do well in a particular region over a period of time.