Denny's Soapbox

This year Easter Sunday is as early as it can possibly be on the calendar. With the long, snowy winter behind us, your outdoor living area deserves some color to highlight this special occasion. You can start adding flowers for outdoor color by planting Pansies. These flowers can highlight a border or you can fill deck or patio pots with these smiley faced flowers. Pansies love sun, at least a half day. The advantage of planting Pansies in pots is that the containers can be moved to the shade when the temps start hanging around 80 degrees and they’ll continue to bloom. Forsythia is the shrub currently in bloom with the bright yellow flowers that usher in spring every year. The next shrubs which will be blooming soon are Korean Lilacs as well as several varieties of fragrant Viburnum.

Spring can also be celebrated with flowering trees. This year there are many varieties that could be in bloom this Easter Sunday. Service Berry is an ornamental tree which is currently showing off its flowers and will then produce berries for the Robins to enjoy this June. The flowering Pear tree family grows to different sizes, all with white blooms and shiny green leaves that turn a brilliant red in late fall. Weeping Cherries including the new ‘Pink Snowshowers’ is also starting to show their beautiful flowers. And right behind the cherries you’ll see the various Flowering Crabs start to bloom in many different colors and growing sizes. There are dwarf ones weeping ones and very upright to very spreading larger growing ones. You have a choice of pink, white, or red flowers that all fade to white as they bloom out. You can also choose red leaf or green leaf. Some flowering crabs bear apples that hang on the tree all season and come in several ripened colors. They also make great food for the robins during the winter.

Blooms still to make their appearance would be from Red Bud, Florida Dogwood, Canada Red Cherry, White Fringe, Kousa and Rutgers Dogwood and Sweet Bay Magnolia.

There is a flowering tree variety that will fit in any yard, large or very small. If you want some good suggestions for flowering trees and shrubs, take a picture, along with measurements of the area to one of the many great garden centers that this area is blessed with to assure you get the right plant for the the right place and your desired bloom time. If you do choose a flowering tree and plant it today, Peter Cottontail might just hang some Easter Eggs on it.

Some Potted Easter flower tips:

If you acquired a potted Easter plant this year, here are some suggestions to ensure some of the blooms return for future enjoyment.

Daffodils, Hyacinths, and Easter Lilies - after the flowers finish blooming, keep them growing in their pots until the leaves naturally yellow (about 6 to 8 weeks). Remove the old leaves and plant the bulbs 8” deep in a sunny location. Lilies are normally June flowering and will grow to 30” tall. Plant them toward the back of your flower beds so they don’t block shorter growing plants. Pinch off the yellow stamens inside the lily flowers to keep the petals white and not spotted with yellow stains.

Azaleas - just make sure they are cold hardy, outdoor varieties.

Tulips, throw away after bloom. Chances are great that they are an annual variety and are only going to bloom one time.