The Midwest's fertile soils and four-season climate compensate for its sometimes extreme temperatures. Here are few tips to make Midwest gardening easier.
The Midwest's large, bio-diverse expanses, its varied terrains, temperature extremes, prevailing winds and precipitation totals combine to create a multitude of growing-season variables within a single geographic area.
A few notable "givens," however, do dominate gardening chores and practices, no matter where in the Midwest you're hanging your hoe. Within the confines of a few, general rules-of-thumb, today's Midwestern gardener will find the guidance necessary to coax hundreds of plants -- successfully -- from some of the nation's most fertile soils:
1. Expect extremes.
Whether you're gardening in Minnesota, Missouri or Michigan, or anywhere else in the Midwest, you can expect routine temperature extremes. That translates into a little extra TLC, pretty much around-the-calendar.
2. Expect a compressed growing season.
There are rarely more than 190 days in the average growing season, far fewer in some northern reaches of the region. So just don't set your heart on growing plants and flowers that must have a long and languid adolescence and maturity! The region's fickle springs and autumns can't provide that.
3. Expect to succeed, especially with native plants.
The receding glaciers that carved the Great Lakes out of bare earth also left an incredibly fertile Midwest expanse that's perfectly matched to growing green things. Ferns and flowers, fruits, grains and vegetables ... they'll all find a sweet, nutritious soil into which to dig deep roots.
About those extremes ...
Spring and autumn temperatures in the Midwest can be not only extreme, they can also be wildly volatile literally from day to day. A 70-degree temperature range from one day to the next can be especially hard on new gardeners. But it happens, and it's not really that uncommon.
So be prepared for anything, including late spring freezes and snow on Memorial Day. You'll also want to learn about some other interesting, localized meteorological phenomena such as ice fog, thunder snow and the eye-popping fall events that suddenly and easily drop 20 inches of "lake effect" snow in your yard, when there's not a single flake just a mile down the road!
The upside of Midwest gardening far outweighs its challenges. The soil is typically rich and fertile. Each season creates a panoply of blossoms and blooms, from spring's earliest Snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis) to fall's pungent, colorful mums (Chrysanthemum).
Midwest Gardening Tips
Midwestern gardens show off hundreds of flourishing plants and flowers. Here are some tips for yours!
* Know your area's planting dates. Seeds and seedlings will usually survive quite nicely when planted after the "average last frost" date. That date will vary, however by as much as two full months across the region -- from as early as March 25 in southern Indiana and Missouri, to as late as May 22 in northern Michigan and Minnesota.
Best bet: Call your local extension service for specific information about your neighborhood, because many factors, such as lake proximity, prevailing winds and site elevation will affect your soil's readiness in the spring.
* Buy and plant native seeds and plants whenever you can. These natives should form the core of your garden plan, because they'll thrive best where they were born! Check your phone book for local garden clubs and nature centers, groups that usually include at least one or two native-plant sales on their annual fund-raising calendars. Also check with local conservation societies and historic groups. These folks often keep a list of flora and fauna that are native to an area.
* If you're filling in your garden with non-native annuals and perennials, try a pilot program their first year. Don't invest a lot of cash in the untried, non-natives that might not do well or even survive the uncertain seasons. But you can get some great bargains off-season. Usually, local garden centers will sell these lovelies at big discounts around the end of June and July 4th holiday, so be on the look-out!
* Even when the higher-flying sun warms Midwest days in the spring, the temperatures often drop well below freezing at night. Midwestern gardeners typically struggle every sunny early-spring day to resist the urge to uncover and de-mulch their gardens. Rule-of-thumb: Leave the protective winter blanket in place until night-time temperatures hit freezing, and stay there for a week or so.
* Keep a stash of newspapers or light plastic handy in spring and fall. Invariably, you'll hear the warning to "cover your plants tonight" as the odd late-spring or early-fall "Alberta Clipper" weather system comes racing down from Canada, blanketing the Midwest in a sudden, bone-chilling freeze.
* Prepare for the occasional extended dry spell, as brief drought-like weather does indeed periodically invade Midwestern gardens. Even as far north as Michigan, it's not unusual to catch several 100-degree days in late summer. Watering and sprinkling the lawns and gardens are very common activities, and your garden will want at least a full inch of life-nourishing water a week.
* Water well, but don't overwater! Knowing when to turn the sprinkler off is easy when you know the Midwest's trick. Just put a regular drinking glass in your garden the first time you use your sprinkler on it. Set your kitchen timer, and watch to see how much time passes before there's an inch of water in your glass. However long it takes your sprinkler to reach that inch mark, is roughly how long your sprinkler needs to run in your garden when Mother Nature's not doing the job for you!
* Don't divide your spring perennials too early, or you'll scare the roots! Let their brief, lovely flowers fade away in the spring before you begin dividing them. By the time you're dividing, the night-time temperatures should now be consistently above freezing. This is a good time to be sure all of your winter mulch is removed, so that daytime sunshine can warm the soil up and give your summer plants a good wake-up call!
* When planning a three-season Midwest garden, think "front-to-back." Typically, spring plants are much shorter, summer-blooming plants are taller, and autumn's display is tallest of all.
* In June, start planting your summer bulbs -- the tall gladiolus and lilies. Put these bulbs in the back row of your garden or border to ensure three-season color. Mark them with sticks, so you don't inadvertently ignore them in your enthusiasm to dig deep next spring!
In the end, the most important rule-of-thumb is simplest of all: If you enjoy it, plant it in your Midwest garden!
