Thinking about Spring in the middle of Winter

One of the best things about us 'crazies' that garden for fun and for cutting food costs is being able to dream about summer. Even now in the dead of winter, looking out the window at snow galore and Mr. Temperature in the mid 20's,

we are planning the start date for the '09 food garden.We've been working on the garden patch for over a dozen years and committed to the sustainable approach six years back. Last week over a glass of Merlot, we re-calibrated the garden design drawings and picked a start date, March 21st for those who circle dates on the calendar.

We usually get a 'fake spring' in the last week or so of February but the veteran farmers ignore this attempt by Mother Nature to get a last laugh at the rookies, so we do also. I mean you could get out and try to dig some ground but just below that 1/2" of muddy stuff, you'll still encounter frozen earth; good soil, with lots of nutrients but hard as an ice cube just the same.