How to protect your spring buds ahead of upcoming snowfall
MINNEAPOLIS — It's shaping up to look like a snowy weekend — but after record-breaking temperatures in recent weeks, our buds might be confused.
"We have a lot of spring bulbs coming up and blooming right now," Janet Skalicky said. "I have no idea what we are going to do."
Like many Minnesotans this time of year, Skalicky is ready for change.
"I'm looking for some color. With Easter coming up I'm looking for some tulips," she said.
But despite signs of spring, winter isn't over just yet.
"If your tulips or iris' are already coming up, it's normal because it has been warm," Sunnyside Gardens store manager JP Pizarro said.
Even with our mild winter, Pizarro says to keep your garden beds untouched; meaning hold off on your spring cleaning.
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"Nature has its own ways to protect themselves and once we start going with the spring cleaning mentality we affect those cycles," he said.
Experts say to wait until we hit 50 degrees consistently to do any spring cleaning. With recent warm temperatures though, some may have already started. So now what?
"Chances are those first leaves are going to get a little damaged and that's fine," Pizarro said. "The flowers are not quite yet showing so the leaves naturally come out to give that protection."
Pizarro says to protect your plants with elements like cotton sheets, frost cloth and towels. Avoid using plastic—it only covers plants from water and doesn't add any extra protection from the cold.
"It's just some plants that are more tender than others and that's where we take the extra step," he said.
He advises eager planters to not get ahead of themselves.
"People are very excited for color it has been the weirdest winter," he said. "So everybody has the sprig fever of trying to put elements of colors back in, but just a couple more days maybe hold it."
That's because winter's teasing departure is just that – a tease.
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