Thursday, February 19, 2026

Visions of growing things dance in my head...

Every once a while in central Indiana we get to experience a few amazingly warm days during the winter months.  Yesterday, it reached 70℉, and today may see a high of 65 before the rains and winds blow in more seasonably cold weather for the next week of days.  

I celebrated this spring-like weather by sitting myself in the sun and planting some seeds in pots.  Just whatever struck my fancy.


Mostly, lettuces and other leafy greens.  And a few herbs.  And kohlrabi - which is possibly a ridiculous thing to plant in a pot, but I did it anyway.



I also moved my hibiscus plants (above) into the sunroom, and fertilized them. If these perk up, I will repot them to a larger planter outside when the temperatures have stabilized.  These were bought on clearance last summer. Years ago, I had great success with clearanced hibiscus - keeping them for a couple of summers.  I'm hoping I can get at least another summer out of these.


And the amaryllis (above) that my neighbor gave me last spring is producing some growth, so it got a side dressing of new soil and some fertilizer.  Since Easter is early this year (at least in my mind it is) I might be a tad late getting this back in the sun if I hope for a bloom by then.  I'm not overly hoping.  I'll just be thrilled if it blooms again, given my complete neglect of it since its blooms died off last spring.




We'll see if anything above grows.  Just planting and tending these things made me happy yesterday. And then dinner and good discussion with youngest son made my day complete.  The snow here has finally melted. Birds are singing. Sandhill cranes are flying overhead with their distinct call.  

Spring is coming! 

19 comments:

  1. It's in the 70s here in Nashville today as well, but we know better than to get excited and shed the coats and gloves for good. Back to Arctic temps next week! But for now, we will enjoy the spring preview. And good on for you for all the planting!

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    1. Oh no, Bob. I imagine Tennessee being significantly warmer than it is here, but maybe not. I've never traveled to Tennessee in anything but hot hot summer weather. These little glimpses of spring weather are such a gift in late winter.

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  2. Hello! I can literally feel the sun on my face, my friend. Thank you for sharing! Spring is coming, indeed!

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    1. Billie Jo, I've been ready for spring since our first artic blast in early December. :)

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  3. We had spring for 2 weeks and my neighbor planted a garden. Back to cool days and cold (for us) night for the past week. I hope your pots sprout for you and can be transplanted to where you want them.

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    1. Thanks, Marsha! It will feel very satisfying if I get anything to grow.

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  4. Sounds like a wonderful way to spend a few springlike days! We, here in north central Florida, are having warm afternoons up into the 80's this weekend, but then we will plunge back down to the 30's next week! Crazy winter weather. Keeps teasing us into thinking it's spring! I hope your amaryllis blooms at the right time! Mine are all planted in the ground outside, and they were growing nicely until we had that freezing weather. I hope they will come back. They usually do, but probably not until May or June, maybe. Anyway, it is nice to think about spring!! It will come. It always does...eventually!

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    1. Pam, I can't imagine what a shock to the system it must be for Floridians to have that cold of weather. Temps in the 30's sounds almost balmy after our bitter bouts this winter. :D This has been an interesting winter for a lot of places.

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  5. We had Spring-ish weather last week, but are back to the cold and rain. I cannot wait for Spring to finally come!

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    1. Back to the cold here now, too, TB. But I see 50's in the forecast next week. Any bad weather we may get from this point on will hopefully resolve quickly. It's so much more tolerable getting snow in March (or even April) knowing it just won't hang around very long.

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  6. Planting seeds and tending plants does make winter cheerier.
    May

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    1. It definitely puts me in the mind of spring, May.

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  7. Knowing this cold weather, 25F right now, was on it's way, I refrained from planting anything though I was sorely tempted. Perhaps in another week if the 10 day forecast if favorable, I will get some carrots, peas and other things in the garden and maybe start some warmer weather stuff for moving to the greenhouse later.

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    1. Ed, if we don't have endless rain like we did last spring (which made the garden too soggy - until mid-May if I recall correctly), I'm hoping to get some cool weather things in the ground in a few weeks. While I knew planting in the ground would be premature, I did check out where I planted garlic, and the asparagus patch, and the strawberry beds. I considered uncovering the strawberry beds, but decided to hold of a little while longer. The only thing I saw sprouting so far was the walking onions. I mostly keep those for entertainment. :D

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  8. Temps in the 70's is but a distant dream for us. I'm so sick of winter this year (well, I get sick of it every year, but this year seems to be a lot worse). Planting things is a long way off, sadly.

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    1. You know, Mary Anne... even though it was glorious to experience a 70 degree day in February, I don't want it to warm up too quickly. I detest the heat and humidity of our summers - though I think I've been tolerating it better since I've gotten back to gardening. Still... except for the fun of having a garden, I typically spend summer looking forward to autumn.

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  9. You are ambitious with your gardening, Becki, making the most of the springlike days! I hope that also means that you have recovered well (fully?) from your bout with pancreatitis! I, too, am ready for spring this year. It has been a challenging winter!

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  10. Spring is coming, and with it, I hope the best of health for you. Are you all recovered from the pancreas problem?

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  11. Oh my goodness-the thought of sandhill cranes going over is so wonderful! We don't have that in NY of course. But I'm anxiously waiting for the red wing black birds and the grackles.
    I don't think it's silly to plant kholarabi (sp?) in a pot. They are good to eat and very different looking. Lovely that you had such warm weather!

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