The Steadfast Begonia

Day 147: I've had pretty good success with my last "Non-Stop" begonia tuber. I usually dry them out and tuck them away in a dark, indoor cupboard wrapped up in a paper towel in an attempt to hold them over until the following year. Sometimes I forget they're in there and don't have any other reason to open the door. Today, I needed to fill the flour bin, and I happened to notice that the paper towel had a bulge at the top. "Oh!" sez I. "The begonia has sprouted!" This will be the fourth year for this particular tuber. That's a personal record. I dutifully put it in soil and watered it well, and will keep tending it indoors until the first part of May. Then it'll move out to the front steps where its bright orange blossoms can greet me when I come home from town.

It was a good day for springtime tasks. I also installed the cleaned swallow houses, boiled water and poured it on the bird feeders to reduce the possibility of house-finch eye disease infecting other susceptible species like Evening Grosbeaks, and I purchased a pair of asparagus crowns to add to the garden as soon as the soil warms up. Trust the steadfast begonia: Spring is on the way!