Now that so much of the snow has melted, can't you almost envision the flowers coming up? Of course, as gardeners, we know that there is still a long way to go, even until we see spring bulbs. The snow melt at this point just reveals things we did not get done before the snow fell. (I found that I had not put the garden hoses away in fall!) After this next cold spell passes and before the next snowfall, take some time to step out into the yard and see if there are any of those leftover chores from fall that can be finished. This will save us some time when spring really gets here.

If you start seeds inside and you have a light stand, now would be the time to check that everything is ready before seed starting season arrives. Make sure that the light stand and seed trays are clean, so you can avoid diseased seedlings. Do all the lights work on your stand or do some of them need to be replaced? See if you need to buy new seed trays, peat pellets or seed starting mix.

Here's a warm thought; it's only 58 days until spring!! That means we should be thinking about getting ready for the new growing season. In the weeks leading up to spring, be checking this blog for reminders and tips as well as information on upcoming gardening classes.

While it's too cold to really do much, we can be taking stock of our gardening supplies to see what we need to buy (yes gardening products are already showing up in a few stores). Do you need new tools, do you have potting mix for your container garden (or containers for that matter), do you have supplies for starting seeds indoors? Take inventory and have everything on hand when spring really gets here.

If you would like to make your gardening more environmentally friendly, check out the class I am offering on Feb 3, "Greener Gardening". Go to the homepage (lake.extension.uiuc.edu) and look for the classes in the upper right hand corner of the page. You can see full information on this class and others and you can even register on-line.

Well, it's supposed to snow all day tomorrow, so you won't be getting out much. Why not use that time to start planning your garden? If you are like me, you have already received a stack of seed catalogs. Start looking through them and making your wish list for this summer. If there are new varieties that interest you, don't wait to order. The new selections tend to go quickly.

If you are a vegetable gardener, think about looking for disease resistant varieties. This can save some work in the garden later. You can also think about some of the interesting heirloom vegetables available (just remember that some of these are not very disease resistant). Maybe try some from both categories.

Many of the catalogs also sell plants as well as seeds. Check the catalog to be sure what size plant you are buying. Some catalogs sell very small plants or bareroot plants. These plants are all fine to use; you just need to have realistic expectations about what they will look like when they arrive.

It's never too early to start planning the garden!!

Everyone is looking for a fresh, long lasting Christmas tree. Here are some tips that will help.

-Select a tree with a healthy green appearance and good fragrance

-A fresh tree has few brown needles

-The needles should be flexible

-Run a branch through your hand. The needles should stay on.

-Very few green needles should be shed when tree is shaken lightly or the stump in gently bumped on the ground

Not setting the tree up right away?

-store in a cool area away from wind and sun

-make a fresh cut on the base of the trunk, removing a one inch thick slice

-place the cut end in a bucket of water

Once the tree is indoors

-make another fresh, one inch thick cut on the base of the trunk

-place the tree in a sturdy stand that holds at least a gallon of water

-use plain water in the stand; additives are not needed

-keep the cut end of the trunk below the water line

-if the water drops below the cut end, sap may seal the cut in 4-6 hours

-if a seal forms, make another fresh cut

In General

-the tree may absorb as much as a gallon of water in the first 24 hours; and one or more quarts per day after that

-keep the tree away from drafts and heat sources

-a fresh tree, with proper care, may last as long as 5 weeks

Yes it is time to start thinking about the holidays, so let's start with some holiday plant tips.

Try paperwhites as a holiday decoration. Paperwhite bulbs are available in stores now. Take a shallow dish, fill it with marbles and nestle the bulbs in the marbles. Fill with water to the bottom of the bulbs and keep the water at that level. Give them some sun in a cool room. The bulbs will do the rest. Watch the leaves grow. In a few weeks they will flower.

When buying a poinsettia, look at the yellow 'balls' in the center of the flower. These are the true flowers. If they are closed or slightly open, the plant is fresh. If they are fully open or missing, the plant is old and may not last through the holiday season. Keep poinsettias in a cool room to make them last longer.

Friday, October 9 at 4:30 p.m. is the deadline to turn in an application for the 2010 Master Gardener training in Lake County. Go to the home page of this website for a link to more information.

The weatherman is calling for frost this weekend. So if you have procrastinated about bringing in houseplants, tropicals and summer bulbs, get going now! If you are hoping to get a little more mileage out of the annuals, you will need to cover them up this weekend (containers could be moved into the garage).

I saw an article recently on how lovely it is to put a few pieces of firewood next to the fireplace. You might want to rethink that idea. Firewood sometimes harbors insects and when the wood comes into the warm house, the insects come out. Don't bring your wood in until you are ready to build a fire.

Do you want your garden to look interestng in winter? Sign up for my class on "The Fourth Season: The Garden in Winter". Go to our homepage (lake.extension.uiuc.edu) and look for the program on the right side of the page (registration fee is $7.00).

It's been a little chilly lately. Do you wonder how that might be affecting your garden? Possibly less than you think. As long as we don't have a frost or freeze, most everything will be fine. It is, however, time to think about bringing in the houseplants and tropical plants. They feel uncomfortable when the temperatures get into the 50's at night and we have been below that mark more than once. It might also be time soon to think about digging and storing summer bulbs inside for winter. Go to http://lake.extension.uiuc.edu/lake/downloads/8783.pdf for more info on that topic.

Chewing insects that show up late in the season are annoying because they make our plants look bad. Luckily, they do no lasting damage. Leaves are the food factories of our plants. If chewing insects attack in May or June, the amount of food that plant can make for itself is greatly reduced, leading to stress and possible decline of the plant. Usually by the end of July or early August, the leaves have produced most of the food they will make for the season. So when caterpillars and other chewers show up in August or September the damage is mostly cosmetic. This means that there really is no reason to spray any kind of insecticide on late feeding chewers. Take the green approach and don't spray in this case.