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Spring is coming, I can feel it. The recent rain and warmer temps greened up my lawn, the birds are not frequenting my feeder as much as a month ago, and getting out of bed is getting easier.

Don't ask me about this new daylight savings schedule, though.

Last week I was poking around my flowerbeds looking to see who was peeping their heads up. Snowdrops are blooming, irises are starting to emerge and daffodils are showing some green. I found my first blooming crocus, but tulips have a way to go. Hellebores are shooting new leaves and will bloom shortly. If their foliage is looking tattered, they would benefit from a haircut.

As much as my fingers are itching, I'll leave the dead tops on my perennials a little longer, until I see the new green shoots emerging. We still may get a cold snap, and those tops offer protection to the crown and roots.

Now is a good time to thin some of your deciduous trees or non-flowering shrubs while they are still dormant. Pruning on apple trees, grapes, blueberries and cherries should be about done. Wait a little longer for the more tender peaches and nectarines, though.

Pruning your spring bloomers now will remove flower buds, but I have some old wood in my lilacs that's going to see my loppers this weekend. I'm too busy after they bloom.

This is one of my favorite times of year. I love the crisp brightness of the air, and the promise of warm weather coming. Go for a walk in the woods, or around your neighborhood. See what is starting to come up in your garden or neighbor's yard. Start some seeds indoors and plan your vegetable garden or flowerbeds.

Or just curl up with a good book and enjoy the last vestiges of winter.

Several days ago I saw my first real groundhog of the spring. Excited, I gave chase but, alas, it was soon evident that he could run a lot faster than I could. I don't know why he ran. I just wanted to give him a hug because I really liked his idea of six more weeks of winter this year.

Yes, I'm old enough to remember the winter storm of March 19 to 21 in 1958. But now, armed with the long range forecast from weather.com I am prepared to make predictions for the winter now ending. Or perhaps give my views of what our gardens thought of it.

Temperatures were a bit below normal although, with no harsh runs to remember, that is hard to believe. Cooler winter temperatures always reduce insect populations. No wide swings in temperatures ever hinted to our plants that spring would be early. Often, when that happens, sudden drops can be tough on young trees, flower buds and tip growth.

Cold, dry wind also targets the substance of the last sentence. March is usually the terror month for wind, but so far so good. Moisture has been good, which also mitigates wind effects.

If you think there is nothing I can find to fault this winter for, you forgot about the ice. It brought down a few limbs and bent a few shrubs. Before I continue, let me remind you that native plants are used to our climate and generally survive what our seasons can dish out.

Broken limbs need to be removed. Some rough limb breaks may be slow to recover, invite disease and reduce the longevity of the tree. If you can achieve a smooth cut, healing will be quicker and more successful.

Most shrubs will recover from the necessary pruning to eliminate winter damage. A few shrubs/trees, including members of the pine family, seldom recover.

About eight years ago, a June wind severely twisted an ancient hickory tree near my house. It's size, location, the extent of the damage, and my budget left me feeling bad but with few other options. Remarkably, at least three large limbs eventually died and dropped to the ground. Today you must look carefully to really see the damage.

I'll end with several final thoughts on the subject of ice or snow damage. Every time you tip a limb you make it stiffer and less likely to bend successfully with a winter load. Plant trees and shrubs to fit the space you have and leave the shears in the shed as much as you can.

Several trips over a shrub with a hedger encourage growth that is tight, in addition to stiff. You create a plant with a roof. This will favor breakage rather than bending.

And remember, all trees are not created equal. Those that form tight crotches are much weaker than those with more widely angled branches. 45 degrees, or halfway between vertical and level, is probably the strongest branch configuration.

All in all it was a very favorable winter. Blame the groundhog? I don't know. He had his chance, so I won't try to thank him again.

The winter weather curse of the groundhog is about to expire. It's March. There is hope.

Establishing new lawns is one of those tasks best done early if that is on this spring's agenda. The best time to start grass seed is the fall. The next best time is as soon as the ground is fit in the spring.

If the budget permits, and mine won't, laying sod is a great path to a new yard. You can get an almost instant lawn and, with the availability of water, you have a much wider window on the calendar to work.

Most of us will resort to seeding. Before you get to the seed, think about pH, fertilizer and soil condition. Most grass thrives with a pH of near 6.5. That is an easy number to hit in this area. A soil test would be a good idea. If it's low, add lime and incorporate before planting.

Unfortunately, great lawns are heavy consumers of fertilizer. Again, let the soil test be your guide with fertilizer. A leveled, raked, rock and weed-free site is a prime consideration.

When you are ready to seed, think about seed selection. I use a not-too-distant seed store and usually go in equipped with the sun/shade and wet/dry description of the site. I return with a seed mix right for my conditions.

Usually it is best to get a seed mix. I will continue with a brief overview of the seeds typically found in seed mixes for our area.

I'm a big fan of perennial rye grass. It's stands up to foot traffic and heat. It usually germinates in less than a week and fills in well. Normally it comprises about 20% of a typical grass mix except for shady locations.

Kentucky bluegrass is another persistent and attractive lawn grass. It spreads well forming a dense mat. It also recovers well from weather stress. In a mix, it frequently is about one half. Over-seeding thin spots with perennial rye grass also works well.

Several drawbacks with bluegrass is that it does not like short mowing, is rather slow to germinate and is of quite variable quality and habit in the trade. That's a good reason to shop carefully.

There are a number of fine fescues for the shady sites and as part of a general mix. This component of a good mix is best in shade, low traffic areas and away from heavy moisture. Often it is about a third of a mix.

Seeding rates vary with the variety or mix selected. Herbicides need to be avoided.

Once the seed is on the ground, a very light raking followed by a light rolling is beneficial. The important word here is light and I admit I usually get good results skipping this step.

A very light mulch of straw will also hold moisture and speed germination. That's another step I usually forget without many problems.

Don't get in a hurry to mow a new seeding and set the mower a bit higher until the new planting is well established. Keep the blades sharp.

I had great success with some very late seeding last fall. Hope to do a bit more and fix up a few spots (where I was too late last fall) within several weeks.

About one hundred yards up a steep bank from one of the farm roads my pickup frequently travels sits a native white dogwood tree. It wasn't planted or pampered by humans. It just got lucky and put down roots in a spot favored by dogwoods.

The tree is on the west edge of a small patch of trees, an under-story tree that had crept out to grab a good supply of the sun's afternoon rays. Maybe it's nothing special or maybe its just like an old friend who has been very reliable and around for a long time.

As fall approached last year one could not miss its copious crop of red berries. I admired them for weeks. Driving past one late fall afternoon I saw that it was hosting a swarm of birds. I paused, but the light angle was rather poor and I couldn't make a positive feathered ID.

It was about a half hour until my curiosity got the best of me and I got my binoculars and returned. I scanned the tree, but did not spot a single bird. What I did see to my amazement was that they had missed but a single berry. In awe of the job they had done I was disappointed that I hadn't hurried back to identify this efficient crew.

Returning toward the house with the binoculars, I spied the birds again. This time they were cleaning the less spectacular crop of berries from the dogwoods in front of my house. They were robins. It was at least two weeks after I thought the last robin had headed south, a fact that led me to dismiss robins on my first sighting.

Happy to realize that my trees had fueled a late traveling band of robins for another leg of their migration I began to think about how man and birds share this land and how we can interact to help both species.

Quite honestly, my guess is that we get a lot more enjoyment from seeing them than they get from seeing us. Many of us put out feeders in the winter. A few feed all year. The birds really don't need this help but it is appreciated, especially on cold, snowy days when the bird's energy needs are up and the natural food supply is hidden. Our feeders are easy when the birds have urgent needs.

Taking it a step further, can you imagine a landscape without birds? That leads one to ponder the question as to whether we can make minor adjustments to our landscapes to favor and attract more birds.

To be successful, birds need food, shelter, water and a place to rear their young. On some of those points man isn't prone to help the birds. We want our lawns short and well trimmed. If we are in the woods we prize our large trees but frequently destroy the under-story. As a people we're too neat for most of the other critters on this earth.

For today, I'll put this to rest with the simple statement that birds and other critters like a bit of untidiness, maybe even minor landscape clutter. You have a choice. Is it your yard or will you share it?