On Feb 28, 8:56 am, "
wrote:
Spring at last... almost! The official first day of spring is March 21,
but in many parts of the country, it is beginning to feel like spring
is already in the air.


Weeding
Probably everyone's least-favorite garden activity, perhaps because it
feels destructive rather than constructive, and it can be backbreaking
work. As I've said before, do a little at a time, interspersed with
more enjoyable garden activities, and it will seem less of a pain in
the, uh, knees.
If you're using a cultivator as part of your spring gardening project,
don't be tempted to use it in bulb beds. Remove the weeds by hand or
you'll risk injuring the delicate root systems.


Yes, it's weed spring time here in Los Angeles, as well!

Recognizing that this place is more like a desert with a big ocean
breeze most of the year, the spring season is marked by new weeds
sprouting up from exposed soil after an occasional rain in January or
February. We don't have snow or ice that has to thaw. The
undeveloped hills around the city turn brown in the summer and remain
a dull brown or beige until the new rainy season, such as it may be.
So spring is when brown hills turn green. Hard to explain if you've
never lived out here.

But, since millions of people do live in similar climates, we need to
clamor about the fun and work of spring! This includes the work of
weeding, of course. When the ground is still moist after the rain,
this is the best time to pull or twist out your sprouting weeds with a
weed puller or weed twister. Many of these tools are very precise and
even with a long handle can protect your bulbs, as long as you are
careful. The long handle will also protect your back!

I personally don't see gardening as requiring hard work. Hard work
would be like weeding strawberry fields hours a day in the sun by
hand! Even the strawberry growers today are learning to use new hand
tools to make the job much easier on the workers.

Yes, the strawberry fields in So. Cal. look very green this time of
year!

If we have weeds to pull this time of year, we should consider it a
blessing!

Ray