October is planting season in the Phoenix, Arizona area

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If you've just moved to Phoenix from back east, or are just starting to work on your garden, you may be surprised to find that *spring planting* is done in October here.

It's early Wednesday morning, October 2nd, here at The Tropical Paradise, and as usual, I'm looking forward to the the most beautiful weather on planet earth for the next six months. I call it *Chamber of Commerce weather*. You know, mid-seventies, blue skies, perfect for golf. And perfect for gardening!

I started putting in annual flowers last month and will continue through October. This year I'm planting vincas, but I've also gotten brave again and planted lettuce. I planted lettuce a few years ago and the snails got 'em, but I've seen cleaned up the area, which used to be very boggy, so hopefully the snails will stay away. The lettuce and vinca area is in front of the cannas, and if you can barely seen them, just wait a few weeks - they'll grow!

Daffodils on January 2nd
My gardening friends are already talking about the effects of the heavy rains this year (2014), and how it's already making plants bloom and grow. Should be a spectacular season!

Anyway, it's spring planting time here in the desert, if you're a gardener. The nurseries will be bringing in lots of annuals, and it's also the time to plant bulbs. The annuals will bloom through the winter (which is pretty darn cool to see, especially if you're a kid from Minnesota, like me) and the bulbs will start to grow right away, and will bloom in early spring. I have some daffodils here that bloom every year in January! And yes, I do make a point of sending a photo of them to my friends back east who are buried under snow!

By the way, this applies to the greater Phoenix, Arizona area, which for me includes Tucson, Las Vegas, and all of the way to Southern California. My little corner of the world.

I like living in the southwest! Good morning!

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