Although this has been a moderate winter (by Chicago standards), I am ready for spring.  I want to see a lush green canopy, smell the sweet spring air, and feel the spongy earth beneath my feet.  But it is only mid February.  The trees are leafless; the air is cold; and the ground is solidly frozen.  Fortunately, my cold frame provides me with greenery and life during this otherwise drab and dreary time. 

[When the sun shines, temps in the cold frame can be 30 degrees warmer than outside temps.  It is so well insulated (6mm plastic liner, four 24” rolls of BTR, new tarp covering cold frame, and old tarp over that) and protected (tucked into corner between stairwell door and Pon-&-Wit’s wall with only southeast exposure but plenty of radiant heat from building and bricks) that despite single digit temps outside, the lowest temp inside the cold frame has been 270F.  This equates to USDA zone 9.  However, zone 9 does not have as many freezing days, so it is probably closer to zone 7 if you factor in lowest temps and number of freezing days.]

My cold frame is packed with perennials and shrubs that are tough but probably not sufficiently hardy to survive on a Chicago rooftop through winter (zone 3 conditions).  Many still look great, and a few are still flowering.  The ‘Cal-Poly’ rose has two fluffy flowers.  Both the creeping and upright rosemary are in bloom.  And now the spring bulbs have joined them.  Crocus ‘Snowbunting’ opened its first bud yesterday in pot 109.  Lots of bulbs were potted up in autumn to use as demos for the Chicago Botanic Garden’s Hardy Bulbs course starting on March 30.   However, I can’t slow them down. 

The mild temps with the bright sun have started the procession of spring bulbs.  All crocuses are up and green.  Snowdrops are beginning to dangle their buds.  Tulips and alliums are poking out the ground.  Fortunately for the students, you can learn as much from foliage and spent flowers as from plants in peak bloom.  [How’s that for cognitive dissonance.]

The Crocus chrysanthus in pot 109 are supposed to be ‘Snowbunting’ but they look like a wishy washy ‘Prince Claus’ or ‘Ladykiller’.  Regardless they are the most outstanding flowers of the week.  It’s time for Old Man Winter to go, but thanks to crocuses and the cold frame I should be able to keep my sanity for a few more days.