It's Slow Growing in Woodbury Gardens

If you are a gardener who is itching to get your hands into the dirt, you've probably felt like substituting a pair of mittens for the traditional gardening gloves.

Despite the nice weather earlier this week, it is "same old, same cold" for those who are eager to start planting.

"We have had a slow start," said Sue Ngo of , located at 6895 Bailey Road. "The weather has been kind of cold."

Compared to last year's early spring, when the lilacs had already bloomed and were almost gone by this time, this late spring has been a disappointment.

"Is this the latest spring we've had? I don't think so," said Al Kiel, manager at Frattallone's in Valley Creek Mall. "But it's definitely been unusual."

The Frattallone's in Woodbury carries a wide variety of garden tools and accessories, such as fertilizer, hoses, fencing, watering cans and potting soil. They don't carry plants or flowers (those can be found at the Frattallone's stores on Grand Avenue in St. Paul and in Arden Hills), but they have a nice selection of flower and vegetable seeds.

"There are people who are out there planting, but it depends on how hearty the plants they are working with are," said Kiel. 

There are a few schools of thought regarding the "safe" planting date for our Midwestern "Zone 4" region. Some say May 15, others May 21. According to the Northern Gardening website, the rule of thumb is Memorial Day.

For Ngo, it's less predictable: "It really just depends on the weather."

Lilli's carries a variety of flowering plants, trees and shrubs, including raspberry and blueberry plants. The majority of their stock is from the neighboring Bailey's Nurseries.

One thing that is growing during these cool and wet spring days is the grass. Kiel said he knows a lot of his customers have already hauled out the lawnmowers.

"People should have put down that first layer of fertilizer in their yards by now," he said. "When the lilacs start blooming, you better put down that layer or you'll have crab grass starting to grow."

Well, at least something will be growing.

There are several other gardening centers in the area, including Linder's Flower Mart in the parking lot of at 8505 Valley Creek Road; at 8334 Tamarack Village and Gertens, a large full-service garden center and landscaping service located at 5500 Blaine Ave. in Inver Grove Heights.