Daphne odora brightens up winter landscape with its blooms

▪ It’s beginning to look a lot like spring! What’s blooming in my gardens: saucer magnolia, camellia, daphne odora, daffodil, edgeworthia and seasonal annuals like pansy and dianthus.

▪ Speaking of daphne odora. ... Sometimes called winter daphne, this shrub has it all! It features winter blooms, fragrant flowers, is evergreen, shade loving and great for containers or any well-drained garden site.

▪ What’s that yellow, flowering shrub? It’s not forsythia. It’s winter jasmine (Jasminum Nudiflorum). It has beautiful green stems, a long flower time, is cold hardy and grows to 4-by-4-feet in size.

▪ With all of this beautiful weather we are having, it’s time to get out in the garden and tackle some of those projects that you’ve been putting off.

▪ For flowers this spring, now is the time to start seeds indoors of coleus, marigolds, cosmos, zinnias and other warm season annuals. Use the new varieties; they are more disease resistant.

▪ Home and garden shows, garden tours and seminars are beginning. Go online and search for one near you. Start planning today.

▪ Need to plant a container in a hurry? Try a used coffee filter in the bottom of the pot to cover the drainage hole. Fill with soil and plants. It’s quick and easy, and a great way to recycle.

▪ Now is the time to prune hybrid tea roses. Remove weak and diseased canes. Prune remaining canes to a height of 18 to 24 inches. Remove and replace mulch if there was a significant disease or insect problem on the roses.

▪ Have a nice Valentine’s Day. This year, buy flowers and plants for that special someone that can be planted in the garden later.

This story was originally published February 7, 2017 at 6:36 AM with the headline "Daphne odora brightens up winter landscape with its blooms."