How does your garden grow?

Alison decided she needed a project. Nothing much, just something to keep her busy while the baby was sleeping. After reading several blogs, she decided it was time to try her hand at gardening. The weather was starting to warm up very nicely, and it seemed the ideal moment in time to make the attempt at cultivating a green thumb.

She chose a spot outside the front door, and thought a few flowers would look nice in there. It wasn't much of a spot, and it was going to be lopsided due to the bush growing on the east side of the walk. "Who cares?," she thought, "It's just a few flowers." She had even let herself dream of having a vegetable container garden and a trellis for zucchini. But, not wanting to get overwhelmed, she set a starter budget and made plans to visit a greenhouse.

Her husband, Nicholas, was interested in the idea and wanted to help. She knew his interest wasn't in doing it all, but having him involved seemed like a good idea. Finally Saturday came around. The family packed up in the car and headed off to City Floral Greenhouse. It was just south of Colfax, on Kearney. They had ample parking, and several greenhouses. It was quite overwhelming for this gardening newbie.

The baby had fallen asleep on the way to the nursery, so they packed him into his bright orange stroller, still cozy in his infant carrier. They wheeled their way into the main entrance, and began to take in the colors. There were potted plants, trees, hanging plants, and rows and rows of flowers. Alison did not know where to begin.

Eventually, the family was able to locate some help. They were directed to the pansies, and told to wait to plant many other varieties of flowers. In Colorado, the spring weather can be quite unpredictable. The nights can stay in the 30s and 40s well into May. Even then, there may be the occasional June snowstorm. But, the knowledgable emloyee told them the pansies would do well in the slightly cool weather, especially if the are recieved 6 or more hours of sunlight. However, around June or July, the weather would be too hot and the pansies would die. Then, they would probably be replaced by geraniums.

Alison and Nick thought this was a fine plan. They chose a flat of pansies, in white, light blue, and black. They also chose some small white flowers to border the sidewalk. As gardening newbies, they still needed tools. In the far back of the greenhouse, all sorts of tools, fertilizers, and pots could be found. Their helper found them a trowel and a small box of Miracle Gro, and directed them to ask the checkout counter for Cotton Bowl compost. So, they bought a bag of poop. At the checkout counter, they also discovered you can buy live bugs! There were packs of lady bugs (thousands of lady bugs!), praying mantis eggs, and boxes of worms. All the natural composters and pest control you could think of.

A nice young guy helped them out to the car with their treasures, and they found places for everything (even the stroller) in the trunk. It had been a fun and eventful trip, and it would be repeated soon. Alison had plans. Oh, how she had plans.