Hi Everyone,

From time to time, John Peter Thompson Behnke’s Chairman of the Board will write, hold-forth, comment, and describe life in, near and related to gardening. Like a vine he will meander through many topics.

Additionally, he would be delighted to answer questions gardening.  If there is a subject you would like to chat about please do.  Besides our Chairman adding to this forum, we will have our Landscape & Design give us some landscaping tips and advice.  So join in and ask away!

To get this forum going, we are going to start off with a idea to bring a little spring to your homes!

So you can’t wait for spring to arrive; you feel trapped and want a touch of
spring to lift your mood.  Go forth and cut a long stem of forsythia,
(Forsythia x intermedia), and bring it inside.  Place it in a vase with
tepid water, room temperature, wait two weeks.  The yellow heralds of spring
will burst forth inside and reassure you that the ice and cold will soon be
only a memory; and there…spring will bloom for you!

You can add a few stems of pussy willow, (Salix discolor), to for added
interest. East European Christians, such as the Russian Orthodox, carry
pussy willows on Palm Sunday instead of palm branches.  You can add them to
the same vase with the forsythia for you own sign of spring.

And do not fret; your early light pruning will encourage new straight stems
of early spring for next year.  Remember not to cut all the stems because
you are going to want something left for spring’s arrival outdoors.