Fast-Forward March!
This fickle, rambunctious month is said to enter like a lion and exit like a lamb, or vice-versa, and which end will be which is anyone’s guess. March is the month of Mardi Gras, which we celebrate in PA as Fasnacht Day. We don’t have parades, we have mud sales. March contains the first official day of spring! Yay! Of course, some years it’s as warm as May, and some years you wake up to a blanket of snow.
Best of all, March brings St. Patrick’s Day. Hoist a Guinness to the good saint. Slainte’!
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Spring is a fluid concept, a blurry, ever-shifting line. In Florida, it’s well underway; Panhandle garden centers will post End of Season specials while their conscientious counterparts in PA are still saying No, don’t plant your tomatoes yet! As our resident snowbird and swag model Al Mueller, still in Florida, put it in late February: “The birds are twitterpated and celebrating spring!” |
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On the very day Al texted that report, northern birds were finding slim pickings among shrubs thickly sheathed in glittering ice. Our snowbirds are migratory, like Al, but they’re actual birds – dark-eyed juncos, Junco hyemalis. As I type, their much-larger avian kin, snow geese (Anser caerulescens), are gathered by the noisy tens of thousands here. Both species are awaiting milder temps, fueling up for the last leg of their trek to the Arctic tundra. Bon voyage!
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In the greenhouse, most birds have flown, alas: Just a few trays remain of Aquilegia Earlybird™ series and Swan Pink-Yellow. But if it’s Columbines you need, never fear: The Origami™, Kirigami and Winky series are ready to migrate your way.
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About the Rock Star Award
Our Rock Star award honors ECG employees who demonstrate a sustained high level of performance and inspire others. Our latest recipient, Lee Hatcher, joined ECG in 2020. He’s now an assistant grower on the plant care team at our Milton, FL location. Here’s what Lee’s co-workers had to say when nominating him.
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“My vote is for Lee in plant care. That’s one hard working dude!”
“Lee Hatcher get my vote. He works very hard and is very consistent at plant care duties such as trimming, cutting, and drenching. He will normally be seen working alone, getting after it. Very dependable.”
“I’d like to nominate Lee Hatcher for Rock Star. He’s proven himself reliable and hardworking, all while maintaining a great attitude. Last month he was promoted to assistant grower. He’s continued to shine in this new role, never shying away from more responsibilities or the chance to learn something new.”
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“Lee deserves this award! He works so hard.
We feel very blessed.”
- Lee's wife Natalie (ECG Plant Care)
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“My vote will once again go to Lee Hatcher of Milton grass plant care. Day in and day out, Lee displays an unparalleled work ethic paired with a positive attitude. He’s willing and eager to learn, and flexible. Everyone knows we can count on Lee in a pinch. Always willing to lend a hand to any and all departments. I truly enjoy working with Lee.”
“I'd like to nominate Lee Hatcher from Plant Care. He is consistent, reliable, and hard working. He thoroughly understands the workings of the farm and is invaluable as an employee.”
“Without reservation, Lee Hatcher has stepped up and deserves recognition. Lee is always willing to take on new responsibilities and tasks. He is extremely reliable and hardworking.”
“I’m very grateful we have Lee on the team. I’m looking forward to watching him ‘grow’ along with the plants he tends!”
Congratulations, Mr. Hatcher, and thank you for helping to make Emerald Coast Growers a great place to work and advance. You rock!
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Lee Hatcher with ECG President, Paul Babikow |
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Lee Hatcher with Grower, Tabitha Slattery |
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“Northern sea oats” is an interesting, highly decorative native grass, with foliage that reminds you of bamboo and intricate seedheads that look like oats. Emerging green, they turn purple/bronze in summer and finally tawny in fall and winter.
Chasmanthium tolerates more shade than most ornamental grasses. And it’s juglone tolerant, so even the notoriously unfriendly shade under black walnut trees is available for gardening.
Those pendulous seedheads are dazzling in late-afternoon sunlight. At any color stage, they make a fabulous filler for flower arrangements, fresh or dried.
Height 3 – 4’. Hardy in Zones 5 – 9
Feeling your oats? Fill your bowl with Chasmanthium. It comes in two slick-planting, fast-finishing liner sizes: Economical 72s, and beefy 38s.
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SWAGGERS: We have a winner!
Three winners, in fact, from last month’s Bogus Holidays quiz. Puzzlemeistress Anna Graham spilled her big bag o’swag and shared the goodies with Kathy Bondar, Kathy's 2nd Chance Plants, Greenfield, WI; Chuck Chambers, City of Irving, TX; and Wendy Hanzel, Aris Horticulture, Barberton, OH.
The made-up holiday: National Vacuum Cleaner Appreciation Day.
Anna had so much fun with that February fib, she decided to do it again! Can you spot the fictitious factoid lurking in this month’s list?
● The Ides of March were made famous by William Shakespeare (Julius Caesar, Act 1, Scene 2) but actually every month has “ides.”
● March 3d is “What If Cats and Dogs Had Opposable Thumbs?” Day.
● March is National Celery Month, National Noodle Month and National Umbrella Month.
● March 21 is World Poetry Day AND National Peanut Butter Lovers’ Day.
● Peanuts are also called goobers, pindars, groundnuts and monkey nuts.
Pencils down! Send your answers to AnnaGraham@ecgrowers.com to be eligible for more fab swag, all bearing the handsomest logo in horticulture. Good luck!
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Here’s one we don’t often spotlight, because we don’t have to. “Bowles’ golden” is well known by growers and gardeners, and it tends not to linger on Availability. So we’re happy to report that we have a bunch right now that would look even better on your benches.
This versatile sedge performs beautifully in consistently moist soil, in the border, at pond’s edge, or even IN the pond. That’s right – those lovely golden blades can handle totally submerged roots!
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Hardy in Zones 5 – 9, it stands a serene 15 – 18” tall. Take the plunge! |
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March’s slow march toward warmer weather can seem like an endless slog. Take heart, and remember the wise words of one of our fave authors, Annie Dillard: “Spring is seeping north, towards me and away from me, at 16 miles a day.”
Annie wouldn’t steer you wrong. Better days, warmer and more profitable, are en route, migrating to your neck of the woods. Soon the song of the cash register will once more ring out across the land as hibernating gardeners stir themselves. Be ready for them! Slainte’ mhor!
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John Friel
Marketing Manager
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