I decided to proclaim the beginning of Spring here today too :nananananana: even though we're looking at 40's all week. I figure the coldest weather is past us now, so I pulled the big heater out of the filter and dropped the media back in place. I got a new net on clearance a couple weeks ago, and the net is just right to scoop up gravel off the bottom but let the sand sift back through, so I got some of the gravel cleaned up. Surprisingly, a couple of my irises stayed green in the water all Winter. Some of the plants are starting to show signs of life, including my largest lily.
Unfortunately it is not looking promising for my tall grasses I planted around the edge last year. I just cannot understand why these things will not survive a Winter. They should have had plenty of time to get some deep roots sent out, plus this has been a fairly wet Winter for us. I've tried various types up to two zones colder than me, but they never come back the next year. The only hope I still have is that these dropped seeds, so maybe those will come up. Of course there's always the chance that its just a slow-starter. The bleeding hearts look dead until almost June before they take off.
Ah well, got more of the dead leaves out of the bottom of the big pond, and the fish should be getting active soon and stir up the rest of the dead matter. Hooray for Spring cleaning!
