Anticipating Spring’s Colorful and Flowery Arrival

I am a master gardener…wannabe! I love working in my yard and flower beds, attempting to create a colorful, encouraging, and enjoyable place to hang out, and hopefully something that others will enjoy.

One of my favorite things to do is to walk through neighborhoods to admire others’ work and find ideas that I could replicate in my garden. I have the best intentions….

Gardening is therapy. I used to say it’s cheaper than speaking to a real therapist, but after my purchases over the last couple of years, I’m not too sure! I know I have a problem, but it’s just so hard to pass up a pretty annual that I know will make me happy. And at the end of the flower season, I am a sucker for the discounted perennials that look like they won’t survive. Most of the ones I’ve planted in September/October have survived. A couple didn’t, but that’s okay. I think gardening is a lot of trial and error, or at least that’s what I keep telling myself.

My late great Mom wasn’t necessarily a gardener, but we always had purple irises, pink peonies, red azaleas, and multi-color hydrangeas in the front and back yards. Maybe she did spend time in the yard, and I was too young and self-absorbed to notice. In reflection, my childhood home’s yard was colorful and brings back many fond memories.

And it’s not just memories that we have…when my mother sold our family home – after living in it for 46+ years – my sister had the foresight to dig up some of the perennials that her family could enjoy long after we sold the house, and after Mom passed away. Fourteen years later, Mom’s irises are now in the yards of her children and grandchildren in Kentucky and Indiana, and there are many more to share. I took cuts of her peony bush that my sister transplanted and am hopeful to have blooms this Spring. When a childhood friend was selling her parents’ home, I got permission to dig up some purple phlox, and they now cascade over a stone wall around the corner lot.

Creating a beautiful flower garden can be expensive, but if you trade flowers with friends and colleagues (I have some irises to share) or start flowers from seed packets, it can be manageable, fun, and rewarding. There’s something about seeing buds pop that makes me so happy.

Gardening isn’t for everyone, so if you want to enjoy beautiful flowers and plants, visit the Western Kentucky Botanical Garden in Owensboro or walk around your neighborhoods and parks. It’s something to look forward to during the cold, wet, and drab days of winter.

Becky Barnhart joined OCTC’s Workforce Solutions team in November 2024 as the Director of Professional Development and Training Solutions. An Owensboro native, Becky graduated from Owensboro High School and Western Kentucky University, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism. Before joining OCTC, Becky served as the Executive Director of the Senior Community Center (Munday Center) for four years.