I trimmed the butterfly bushes in back. I use them as a feeding area for the white-throated sparrows and cardinals during the Winter so I left the cuttings on the ground. The birds approved of my work.

Not much but I readied the 3 birdhouses too. If it is nice on Wednesday, I will take the berries off my Winterthur viburnums in front and rake the leaves from the plants. I have a lot of trimming to do this Spring.

i too cleaned up and was thrilled to see a group of crocus in bloom, considering just the week before we had several inches of snow. also, all the tulips and daffs are pushing up the green.

i have been out and about any day there was a hint of decent weather to get a head start. i have (terrible) neighbors that allow all their weeds and bushes and whatnot to grow out of control and over the fence and it all comes creeping into my vegetable garden. i finally put my foot down and told them they have to clean it. (i wouldn't mind if it was something decent, but it's ivy and junk).

the veggie garden is the last area i have to clean up and will be getting it done this week. i make sure i don't over-do it, although i spend hours out there, but top it off with a good long soak in the tub.

i already have many seeds started that i wintersowed and yesterday i would see some of the jugs have sprouts.

spring is certainly in the air. gardening is indeed, one of the best remedies for whatever ails ya!

I put in work on Saturday...clipping off all the Helleborus orientalis leaves, debris pickup, some tree pruning, just a start to all that needs to get done. I keep myself pretty fit all year, so it's not so much being active outside, but the stooping and bending are what got me sore on Sunday...ooooohh , Advil to the rescue.

My big project this spring is clearing brush out of a narrow strip of woods that runs 500' along the front of our property. Lots of bending down to clip multi-flora rose stems, ripping their canes out of the tree branches, pulling down grapevine, collecting downed wood and restacking the stone wall. Oh, and of course, moving the compost pile. Again.

No wonder it's taken me 9 years to get around to this project. My back is killing me!

Carol:

That is some big project.

Another backache... today I'm dividing yucca and replanting it in drifts in the newly-cleared woods. Not exactly a native plant, but I can't turn up my nose at any structural deer-resistant evergreen. Plus, it's free.

I sure start the gardening year off vigorously, but always run out of gas around July 15th. August and September are spent watching the weeds grow.