Pansies in February

I wanted a chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting. Or perhaps sea salt caramel frosting.

I'd been wanting one for days, thinking about it off and on whenever I either drove by a cupcake shop or was breathing.  Just one cupcake. It would be a treat. One.

Then I saw on Facebook that a local garden center had pansies for sale. On February 17th. This is unusual enough for our gardening zone that I took notice.

After all, if there are pansies available, I must have them.  But never before have I looked for them before March. In March, I used to cruise by garden centers looking for signs of life, for a few pansies out front. I wanted to always be the first gardener to have a container or two of them planted up in the spring.  I still do.

I'm "wired" to get the pansies in March, not February. But I can be re-wired. I can adapt.

When I saw that the local garden center had pansies, I contacted the local greenhouse where I usually buy all my annuals to find out how their pansies and violas were coming along.  "They look great. We just sold 10 flats to a local garden center."

The plot thickens. The garden center had them because the local greenhouse had some.

Well, after some back and forth online chatting with the greenhouse owner and a quick check of the long-range weather forecast to be sure we weren't being totally fooled by Mother Nature's gift of warmer-than-usual temps in February, I hopped in my SUV and went to the greenhouse.

When I pulled up, they were sitting out front on a break. Laughing. Enjoying the sunshine. Waiting for me to pull up.

After all, traditions. As much as it is my tradition to be the first one to plant pansies in the spring, I think it is their tradition to have me be the first customer to buy pansies in the spring.

We went back and checked out the pansies and violas.  Of course, the garden center people bought the flats with most of the flowers, but I had my pick of all the rest.  I picked 'Candy Mix' and bought two flats of them to take home. Two flats is what I call "a good start".

I've already planted them up. Two long boxes on the porch, one window box under the front window, one big container by the lamp post and one smaller container that probably should be moved because it is in a shady spot by the front door.

In another week or so, I'll go back and get some violas to put with them.

In the meantime, I can think again about getting that chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting, or perhaps sea salt caramel frosting,  at least until the violas are ready to plant.