[ad_1]
CLEVELAND — Gardening isn’t a task normally associated with winter, but February can be the perfect time to plant.
“A lot of times people will get a native seed and not know what to do with it. They’ll try planting it and it won’t work if you plant it in the summer,” explained Allison Welch, the Education Coordinator for Wild Ones Greater Cleveland.
The group is a nonprofit run by volunteers, and it is putting on a series of winter-sowing workshops.
“You need to do it in the winter to experience the right kind of conditions to sprout by spring,” Welch said
Various seeds native to Ohio need winter weather for proper germination and sprouting.
The workshop is free and takes participants through all the steps of planting seeds that will sprout in spring and summer.
The workshop is the perfect pairing for West Creek Conservatory’s Native Seeds Library program, which is now in its second year.
“So here we got the display, with our native seed library,” said Danielle Dejak, the Outreach Coordinator for the West Creek Conservancy.
The program provides free seeds at various locations across northern Ohio.
“This year we really have expanded up to nine locations and up to 12,000 seed packets now,” Dejak said.
Now in its second year, the seed library has expanded because of high demand, partnering with organizations like Holden Garden and Forests, who collected many of the seeds themselves.
So why plant native seeds?
“Native plants are gonna provide a lot of food and habitat for pollinators and just our native wildlife in general and because of their deep root systems they are going to really help with stormwater management, helping to slow the flow of that rainfall and reduce flooding and erosion,” Dejak said.
If you’re feeling antsy this winter, it might be time to consider some gardening.
Wild Ones has partnered with the seed bank to offer a free winter sowing course on Feb. 8 and Feb. 11.
“Come spring, you got a beautiful garden ready to go,” Welch said.
[ad_2]
Corey O’Leary
Source link