iSpy on 05/03/2008
Posted by Smell The Roses on
May 2, 2008
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Plans for pretty spring flowers in containers
By now, some of the plants in your early spring pots are looking a little bedraggled; the kale has bolted, the bulbs are done. Many of the annuals that will survive the brutal heat of July and August may not yet be pot-worthy. Bridge the gap with plants that love the milder temperatures and long days of late spring.
Plant a pot from scratch or just pop in replacements for the spent plants in your late-winter containers. Most annuals don’t grow much beyond the original root ball during winter and early spring, so they can be wiggled out pretty easily. Thoroughly wet the root ball of the new plant and squeeze it to fit into the remaining hole, removing extra soil from the pot if needed.
Leave the snapdragons, alyssum, dianthus, pansies and violas in your container if you have some. These plants are more widely available in the fall because they survive our winters. But they really shine in late spring and early summer, growing taller or fuller and spilling over the pot’s edge.
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Send mom flowers and a gas card
Next week, thoughtful sons and daughters will discover that expensive gasoline has found a target they can’t afford to scrimp on: Mom. Some florists have increased delivery fees for flowers because of escalating gas prices. It’s a repercussion that goes beyond the pump - from banner planes soaring in the sky to mulch tamped in the ground.
Rising gas costs act like a tax embedded in the prices of goods and services, said economist Joseph Seneca, a Rutgers University professor at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy.
“It affects us as consumers; it affects us as employees and as taxpayers, and it becomes the lightning rod for problems with the economy,” he said.
Mix in higher food costs with falling employment and home sales, and the combination worries consumers, he said.
“All the big, powerful, macro forces come down to the effect on flower deliveries - absolutely,” Seneca said. “They’re all related.”
