Waking Up from Winter’s Nap

Prairie Smoke (Geum triflorum)

Spring has been slow to come this year! I had been getting used to the mild winters we have been experiencing in the Chicago region the past several years and welcoming Spring in late February and early March. The early Spring ephemeral, Sharp Lobed Hepatica (Hepatica acutiloba) and the early season bloomer, Wild Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis) have been showing up in my yard by the beginning of March. But not this year! The colder days this winter and the cooler days and nights extending into March means nature is waking up later this season! Even the daffodils and hyacinths are slow to peak through the earth. Its mid March and the greening leaves of Prairie Smoke (Geum triflorum) and some of the cool season grasses like Hairy Wood Chess (Bromus pubescens) and Canada Wild Rye (Elymus canadensis) are the first arrivals in my landscape. I am Ok with the slow start to Spring. The anticipation of what is to come makes me appreciate the beauty even more once it arrives. Maybe the cooler temperatures will allow the Spring ephemerals to stick around longer too!

Now that the days are getting longer and slowly getting warmer, fight the urge to start Spring clean up. The insects and pollinators are still sleeping under the cover of the leaves and stems that remain from last year.