April starts the garden plan. What will the weather be like...too cold to get started? What has died over the winter? Not the weeds, of course. Those pesky things thrive. Can I put in some new plants? By May, the gardener is really into it. This year, I planted a viburnum at the side door. I went to my favorite nursery and asked for one that was really, really fragrant. Actually, I asked for one that stunk to high heaven with perfume . I got a big one...balled and burlap ed. What a chore to get it home. The truck was wonderful. The bush was so big, I know it would not have made it in the car.

OK. The viburnum is home. Now, how do I get it out of the back of the truck? It is way too heavy for me to lift. There is no handy man to press into service. Where are they all hiding? The light bulb goes off. My wagon is placed at the lift gate in the back. I roll the viburnum carefully to the lift gate and shove it off. It lands on the wagon without breaking the root ball. (Taking a break to get my breath back.) It takes me two days to dig the hole...imitating the gardener on This Old House. (What's his name?) I dig the hole, placing the dirt on a tarp. (What lousy dirt. It is mostly sand.) To the dirt, peat moss, soil moist polymer and time release fertilizer is added. The wagon is pulled to the hole. Root ball measured...compared with hole in the ground. I think I got it right. Water is added to the hole while some of the supplements are added. I feel like I am in physics lab, using the law of leverage to get the plant off the wagon onto the ground and into the hole. Mission is accomplished. Success without breaking the root ball. The viburnum sits in the hole at the proper height. It is blooming . The air smells heavenly. That is why I place this plant near the walk to the door. ..to enjoy its fragrance as I walk by. With shears, the burlap is peeled from the roots and discarded. More water goes in the hole. The plant is pivoted and checked to be straight up. Yes, it is. With shovel, the amended dirt goes into the hole. Carefully, air pockets are filled with dirt. The shovel works around the plant so there are no cavities in the soil. By some miracle, all the dirt goes back in the hole. What about the law of displacement? shouldn't I have some left over to equal the volume of the root ball? Go figure. More water. Days later, the plant doesn't know it's been moved. It didn't drop a leaf.

There are still days in May left for more planting. I want everything in the ground before the first of June. By June, the plants will be actively growing. There will be a greater chance they will wilt and die. Don't wait for warm weather. Plant when the plants are still sleeping. I plant a Japanese Ananame for fall flowers. Grass peas are a gift from my Quaker Friend in Syracuse. The peas (seeds) sprout fine. Little grass peas go in the ground, along with four tomato plants and a sweet basil plant. All my geraniums survived the winter on my windowsill. They get repotted, fed and put outside. Three rose bushes were planted last fall. All three are green and thriving. The three asters I planted last fall have made it through the winter. They will be my blue plants for fall. Thyme is planted in a sunny crack between the foundation of the house and the stone walk. On the shady side, Lanium goes in. This plant has silver on its leaves and a pretty pea-like flower. The silver seems to shine in the shade. Around the viburnum, goes pansies.

I've planted flowers where the vegetables used to grow. Now I need a new vegetable bed.