Kukka by Sally Kilgore: One More Frost

ROCKWALL, TX – March 10, 2022 — Early March and I know better than to begin planting flowers. There will be another freeze yet. Still, sunshine and 77 degrees and my gardener’s brain spins and whirls with visions of which new beauties will go into the garden this year. Yesterday, I could not resist a stroll through my favorite garden center, nor could I resist picking up just a few fresh things for the yard and patio. The fog of winter lifts as soon as a gardener can turn the soil, mix in compost and pat in the plants, while the cat bakes in the mulch, squashing the poor olive bush with his lounging sprawl.

Bright yellow Coreopsis will thrive in the Southern exposure of the front yard, and another light freeze should not harm them, more than that and I will use the freeze cloth to protect their cheery faces. Early Spring Phlox with its fluffy looking, pokie- petaled blooms and spreading habit will continue to bloom now until the Texas weather turns hot, (think mid April) then retreat, to pop it’s pretty pinkness back up next February.

A few small Asparagus Fern to edge the horse trough planter that hangs outside of the writing room window, they will hold the fort until I can squeeze in some Coleus for Summer through Fall. A few Weeping Fig, which I can rarely bring through the heat of summer, yet can rarely resist, and some demure little round purple blooms with spreading foliage (I cannot recall the name, they too will only bloom for the Spring. So – do I really need to recall the name?) These in hanging baskets outside the kitchen window.

Finally, potted up on the patio are several bright fuchsia Calibrachoa, clustered in one large terra cotta pot. A darling plant that blooms now until July, when it will give a last gasp and say Adios. They are so very lovely, that I don’t mind the short lived nature. Long ago and far away in another garden, I came across this plant in the loveliest double bloom form. It was one of the most admired pots of blooms, ever in my garden. It actually returned year after year, until one year it didn’t. I’ve never found another variety quite the same, the quest continues. Five small Dwarf Yaupons round out this day, easy enough to pop into the soil at the back of the large backyard garden. Evergreen, for when other beauties fade during the Winter months.

Now with my heart singing cheerily and my body singing dirges of sore muscles, I can allow myself some peace. Though, I know tomorrow I have all those bio-degradable seedling containers to pot up with seeds. And those two new trees to find.

*This column was written on March 3, 2022.

By Sally Kilgore of Rockwall. Sally is a former resident of Rowlett, and a recent transplant, across the lake, to Fate, Texas. She is married to her long time flame, Chris Kilgore. When not writing, gardening, filling in at the local flower shop or hanging out with grandkids, Sally devotes her time to serving Bob Kilgore, a generously sized, Tuxedo cat with panache.