Spring Has Sprung

March Mayhem

Snow on the Crocus | 3.23.26

Hello friends,

March is a volatile month in Phillipsville, Pennsylvania, and it definitely lived up to its reputation this year. In like a lamb, then the lion walked in, decided to eat the lamb and roar through the rest of the month! We had a false Spring early on. It was a really nice and welcome change from the brutal Winter we endured, but then all h-e-double-hockey-sticks broke out. High Wind Warnings ruled the weather forecast, with intermittent snow events sprinkled here and there.

What’s happening right now

Melissa continues her recovery and is getting stronger every day. She’s been faithfully working through physical therapy, and in true Melissa fashion, she couldn’t stay out of the garden for long. Here she is planting strawberry plants. Go Melissa, go!

Outside, the usual early signs of life are starting to show. The Daffodils and Tulips we planted last fall are popping through the soil and mulch, but no blooms just yet. There are some wild Daffadils and Crocuses blooming here and there, and we couldn’t be happier to see some color in the yard!

Inside, we’re in full seed-starting mode. The third round of sowing is underway, and trays are multiplying by the day. We’ll definitely need to get more lights and another shelf set up!

The greenhouse is filling up fast too. All the winter sown seeds are chugging along, and we’re seeing more little sprouts popping up everyday. The first round of seedlings we started inside have moved out here as well, hardening off so they can continue their journey out into the gardens.

The Ranunculus and Anemone have officially made it into the ground. They’ve needed a little extra attention with the cold, so we’ve covered them with shredded leaves and row cover a few times when temperatures dipped. They’re settling in nicely and showing all the signs of a strong start. These could give us some of our first blooms in late May. Our fingers are crossed!

March Mishaps and Mends

March gave us plenty of opportunities to learn from our mistakes, because as with life, things don’t always go as planned. Every time we checked something off the list, something else needed to be reworked.

Our lily bulbs, which were supposed to arrive at the beginning of February, didn’t show up until the second week of March. That delivery made a great Birthday gift for Melissa, but its tardiness was a serious setback for our late Spring plans. We planted them into crates as quickly as possible and adjusted our expectations so we can still have blooms as early as possible. Flexibility on the farm is one of our most valuable tools.

Our experiment with overwintering cold-hardy annuals took a hit thanks to the constant freeze-thaw chaos. Next year’s fix is simple: cover them early and don’t wait for things to get dicey. A little extra protection upfront could have made all the difference.

The landscape fabric we planned to use for pathways between the annual beds didn’t stand a chance against the windstorms. It turns out fabric and 50+ mph gusts aren’t a great combination. The new plan is wood chips, assuming we can get the tree guy to commit to a delivery date. Sometimes the simplest solutions end up being the most reliable.

And then there was the black locust tree that came down into the road, taking a power line with it and blocking traffic for a couple of days. There are a bunch more trees in that same stretch that could do the same thing, or worse, take out a section of our new annual plot. We’ll need to make the hard decision soon whether or not we should just cut them all down. There are enough dead Ash trees on our property on the list, what’s a few more?!

March Milestones

Thankfully, it wasn’t all mayhem. There were plenty of moments this month that reminded us things are moving in the right direction.

Melissa officially ditched the crutches this month and is back to driving again. It’s been really good to see her getting stronger and more mobile each day. Safe to say, we’re both pretty happy about that.

We kicked off a new partnership with Werner Books and Coffee, which will serve as a Petal Collective pickup location, a place to sell our handmade crafts, and a future home for workshops. We’re really excited about this one! Opportunities like this are exactly what we hoped for when we started reaching out locally.

We also secured a spot at the inaugural Lawrence Park Farmer’s Market this season. It’s always exciting to be part of something new, especially when it brings more opportunities to connect with the local community. We’re looking forward to setting up, meeting new faces, and sharing what we’ve been growing.

The first round of seedlings is also coming along really well. Among them, the Lisianthus and Eucalyptus (two we were most paranoid about growing) are looking especially strong. It’s a huge relief to see them thriving after such a slow and uncertain start.

Looking Ahead

April is where things really start to pick up speed. The pace shifts quickly this time of year and there is a ton of work to be done outside

The first round of seedlings will head into the ground early in the month, protected with low tunnels as we keep a cautious eye on the forecast.
Rounds three and four of seed starting are coming up, which will wrap up the indoor sowing season for us.
The walk-in cooler remains a top priority because if everything grows the way we hope it will, we’re going to need it.
We’re hoping for more stable weather and a few dry stretches to help us catch up on outdoor work.
Melissa heads back to work on April 6th. She’s looking forward to a return to normal life after a long stretch at home. She’ll still be keeping up with physical therapy and getting a little stronger every day.

With everything starting to wake up around us, it’s getting easier to picture what the season ahead might look like. We’re not quite there yet, but we’re getting closer to sharing our beautiful blooms with you.

Mother’s Day is right around the corner and the Petal Collective makes a really meaningful gift that keeps showing up long after the day has passed. If you’ve been thinking about joining or gifting a subscription, now is a good time to grab a spot.

Always grateful,
Chris & Melissa
Hopson Hill Flower Farm