Antiques and Collectibles What You Need To Know: Spring Plannning

Thoughts of spring are beginning to fill my head. I enjoy all the seasons even the one that brings travel to a halt and winds that blast snow against your face. But winter is also the season for snowmen, ice sculpture, quiet evenings by the fire, and brisk walks during the day.

With spring comes renewal. I enjoy watching the gardens come to life and while I adore tulips and crocus, I cannot compete with the wildlife that adore the flowers more than I do. I am more than happy to plant my daffodils and watch as they multiply each year.

And another of my favorite flowers, the smiling cool weather pansy. If planted just so, in some shade, will continue to smile throughout most of the summer.

Spring is a time for renewing the many furniture finds you purchased throughout the winter. It is a time for recycling old pots, colanders, purses, and whatever you saved for something but were not sure of at the time, to turn them into planters and unique structures for the garden.

Just as certain houses demand certain types of furnishings, so do houses demand certain types of gardens. A cottage garden will look unkempt if paired with a modern style house. The formal English garden will look harsh inhabiting the same lot as a country farmhouse. Herb gardens are at home near colonial kitchens and bird baths crafted of decorative concrete are a welcome addition to any garden.

So enjoy planning and dreaming for the days are lengthening and it will soon be time to trade our woolen mittens for gardening gloves, and our snow shovels for garden trowels.