Spring is just around the corner! I have been thinking about what to do to prepare for a gorgeous spring. In and around Lake Norman, Davidson, Mooresville, Huntersville, and Cornelius North Carolina we never know exactly when spring will arrive, but is usually is about March 20 or 21 – that is when we have exactly 12 hours of light and 12 hours of darkness.
The Lake Norman, Huntersville, Davidson, Cornelius, Mooresville areas of North Carolina seem to have a high number of corporate transfers. When people relocate to the "Lake Norman" area they bring with them ideas of their favorite plants from back home. If you are transfering from the Northern part of the United States, remember to "think backwards". You probably planned alot around cold weather, not you need to plan around hot weather. You'll want more shade trees. And, because we are still in a drought, you should consider drought resistant shrubs. Some good choices for the Lake Norman area are: abelia, forsythia, leatherleaf mahonia, quince, rose of Sharon, gardenia and many kinds of hollies. For a full list of details including growth rate, size and environment visit: www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/quickref/shrubs/shrubs-drought.html
Anne Clapp of News 14 Carolina says the first order of business is to still enjoy our winter garden but to “clean up edgings so you can get mulch in there when spring arrives”. She also said in her 2/29/08 article Prepare Your winter garden for spring “one of the prettiest plants in the garden this time of year is the Lenten rose. Don’t remove the flowers - you’ll want it to go to seed – but some others will need to be taken care of a bit.”
If you are relocation to North Carolina, I'd love to know what your favorite southern spring flower is. Let me know.
Do you have a favorite spring tip for gardening in the Lake Norman NC area that you would like to share? I’d love to hear from you.
Terri Latta
The Latta Team
Keller Williams Realty