Hello Gardeners!

It’s time to start some flowers indoors! Amaryllis bulbs come in some beautiful colors and brighten up the dreariness of winter. They are obtainable in the garden sections of department stores and nurseries. Most come in kits that include the bulb, pot, soil and instructions. You can also purchase the bulb separately at a lesser cost. These dramatic flowers can grow up to 2 feet and are well worth the trouble. Paperwhite narcissus bulbs are lovely to look at and are sweetly fragrant at the same time. These are usually available at nurseries and also can be obtained in a kit or separately. Fill a dish with gravel or colored stones, fill with water to cover the stones and place the bulbs on top. As the roots develop, the stones anchor the growth. Place them on a table out of direct sunlight, and in 2-3 weeks you will have flowers.

Did you bring your rosemary indoors? It is a Mediterranean native and makes a good shrub in Southern California and climates with dry summers and mild winters. Here in New England, rosemary is a tender perennial, which means it cannot survive all winter out of doors. In our area, it is best grown in a pot to make it easier to bring indoors. Indoors, rosemary needs a light, well-drained soil. It needs full sun and only light feeding. Keep well watered but not waterlogged. I love rosemary but have done them in with well intentions and too much water.

Continue raking and composting leaves as well as general garden cleanup. And don’t forget: you can continue planting spring flowering bulbs until the ground freezes solid.

Happy gardening!

Read previous columns by Edna Schron