Anchorage Daily News

I can only imagine what it is like to be a cheechako gardener in Southcentral right now. Having heard stories of our long summer days, mowing the lawn at any hour day or night and vegetables that grow so fast you can see them increasing in size, they must be scratching their heads and wondering if such talk is simply more of the usual exaggeration hazing Sourdoughs dish out to the unsuspecting newbies.

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Garden calendar (4/9/09)

HERBS TO START FROM SEED: Sorrel, summer savory, parsley.

VEGETABLES TO START FROM SEED: Head lettuces, cabbage, kale, peppers, tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower.

FLOWERS TO START FROM SEED: Dianthus, larkspur, stock, asters, nicotiana, cleome, annual ice plant, zinnia, salpiglossis, snaps, cosmos, lupine, malva.

TREE-GRAFTING CLASS: 1 p.m. Saturday: Dimond Grernhouse. Learn how to graft fruit trees. This is a fantastic opportunity to learn about fruit trees here in Southcentral. Everything you need is supplied. Tree cost is $3 per tree.

SEARS GARDEN FAIR: Saturday. Come and hear the Garden Party live from Sears and visit the booths full of gardening information.

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Ah, but who could blame them for scratching the still hat-bearing head with a warm, gloved hand? Even the Sourdough is wondering what is going on this spring, what with cool temperatures in the teens and a fresh coating of snow leading us into the first weekend of April. It just doesn't feel right.

If it is any help, the truth of the matter is that there are already budding daffodils in areas where there is no snow (under eaves and the like) and by tax day many will be in bloom -- tulips too. Look closely at your trees and you will see the buds swelling. And if you don't want to believe me, notice the flocks of drivers who are flying to the car washes, not because of the volcanic ash but rather the flood of sand and junk that has been melting off our roads.

Snow or no, this is spring in Alaska. Oh sure, two or three years ago this week I was warning folks to stay off their lawns and out of the garden beds until things dried out. There was not a bit of snow and the weather was warm and sunny. This year, we may be a bit late, but after almost 35 years of writing this column and keeping records of such things, let me assure you that it won't be long until you will be working in the soil. It is the nature of gardening here in Alaska to have these doubts as winter fades, but give a week or take a week, things happen fast and relatively on schedule. Really.

In recent columns it's been noted that you have to do things by the calendar when you garden up here or you will simply miss out on opportunities. As an example, if you didn't start leeks from seed a month or more ago, you are just going to be out of luck for the season. It is too late to start seed and you missed the opportunity. Those leeks don't care if there is still snow on the ground in mid-April. By the end of May, for sure, trees will have leaves, nights won't have frosts and those who did start leeks will get them in ground.

The same goes for the tomatoes that you need to start now. Of course, if you want a special variety, you better plan on starting it yourself; varieties are limited by the commercial nature of the nursery business. So rush yourself out to those racks this weekend before the Brandywines or Big Boys or whatever are gone. (Oh, yeah, don't forget you will need a greenhouse for these to set fruit.)

On the flower side, you can pretty much buy what you need from local nurseries without starting your own, but if you really want those lovely, tall malva flowers, you will have to pay a fortune if you can find some already started, or else you'll need to start them yourselves this week, snow or no. The same goes with nicotiana, aka flowering tobacco. Both of these quickly grow into large plants, and that means a nursery has to charge more because they take up so much space. The solution is to believe spring is coming and start your own.

Here is the point: Gardening, anywhere, is an activity that requires a certain quantum of faith. You never know what might happen even under the most ideal conditions. In Alaska, you just have to have a bit more than the normal gardener, because nothing is ideal or normal when it comes to growing things.

Really, you have to believe me on this -- or you may miss out on some of the joy gardening always brings.

Jeff Lowenfels is a member of the Garden Writers Hall of Fame. You can reach him at teamingwithmicrobes.com or by calling 274-5297 during "The Garden Party" radio show from 10 a.m. to noon Saturdays on KBYR AM-700.

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