Is it Spring Yet?

3/20/2026

Ever since I became an adult, my favorite season has always been spring. All the spring flowers (crocus, daffodils, tulips, etc.) just make me happy every time I see them. And living where I do, in a place where we have a “fool’s spring” can be very disheartening at times. Especially when every store has gardening supplies in a march whose average temp is 40°.

I’ve been learning so much about plant care since November when I started to try and keep them. Many dead plants later, I’m starting to feel like I have half an idea of what I’m doing. My only complaint is the weather. Where I am, the weather will swing wildly between days. This year, it hit 90 two days before a snow storm.

Obviously, for my plant-growing dreams, this is a huge issue. They need the extra sun from outdoors but our final frost date is somewhere in the middle of april, when it’s just about too late to sow anything. So what are my options? Clearly, I must start them indoors and early to help my future self have a beautiful balcony.

I never exactly wanted to be a plant person, but I at least want to have a few houseplants I don’t have to replace every couple months. But, no matter what climate I’ve lived in, finances have always kept that dream at bay. Finally, this year is different. I happened to come into some extra cash just at the right moment to get a few plants off my list.

First is a pothos! Pretty simple for a dream plant but it’s perfect for the exact spot I wanted to fill with some green. It’s hard to get sun there and it will be really cool to have vines running down the shelf it’s on once it gets going. Plus, I was looking for a little one for the little pot and there was ONE left! This variety is called a neon pothos and I think the almost yellow leaves are pretty cute.

Next is a baby rubber plant. I didn’t exactly intend to buy one of these but for three bucks, why not take a chance? My hope is that is will get some extra light out of the lamp it’s under. (I got a poinsettia for Christmas last year and was shocked to see it getting tons of new growth just from the lamp.) For now, the plant is comically small for the pot it’s in but call me hopeful, not foolish.

To the naked eye, these may seem like cups full of dirt. And that’s because they are cups full of dirt. But they’re also pots with new seeds. Part of my springtime budget was getting a bird bath and a flower pot to stick it in. But the pot looks rather bare with just the bird bath. I could spring for a tray of pansies and be done with it. But that would have eaten into the budget pretty hard for something that won’t last. Instead, I bought some packets of marigold seeds and am trying to get some sprouts ready to put around the birdbath.