With winter slowly losing its grip on southern Manitoba, and the province's further loosening of pandemic restrictions, greenhouses are preparing to welcome eager growers.

Carla Hrycyna, host of the Lawn and Garden Journal, expects to see a big continuation of people spending time in their backyards this season.

"If there's a trend in some of the economy of some of our fresh goods escalating and cost, I think that we're going to see a lot of people delving into growing their own and filling those freezers full again. So we're going to be out in our gardens, we're going to be growing beautiful flowers for our pollinators. But I think there's going to be a strong focus on herbs and vegetables this year."

March 20th is the first day of spring. Hrycyna says now when the snow is piled high is a great time to scan new catalogues for colour trends and new plants.

Tropical hydrangeas in blue. Photo credit: St. Mary's Nursery & Garden Centre"There's some new varieties of petunias, there's a beautiful calibrachoa called Oh Buttercup that I'm absolutely loving! I'm looking at some of the new coleuses and there's some nice beautiful coleus contrast colours that are out there as well. There's so many different selections of plants and varieties. Sure, there's going to be a few new items and new colour formats, but I think everyone is just so excited to create their own palettes."

Which colour will growers be gravitating toward this season?

"You know what? I think there isn't one solid colour that people are looking at. But there is a colour of the year which is a blue colour tone that we're seeing for some of the colours that are out there. But blue is a hard colour in the garden. We see it as a colour for spring, but you may start to see some of the other colour palettes. There is one plant, it's a blue evolvulus that's really catching my eye."

Gardeners usually wait until May long weekend before putting plants in the ground. March is a good time to take stock of seed supplies.

"Eucalyptus was really trendy last year, and we're already seeing a few people coming in looking for eucalyptus seeds. You're looking at getting your peppers started. Some people like to start some of their perennial seeds a little bit earlier because they are longer extended varieties. Pretty soon, if you're looking into some of the crush marigolds, those also have a long growing time. There's a lot of information on the seed packs that are at the back that tells you when to seed and when to sow and when to get growing."

The selection of tomatoes is extensive, adds Hrycyna, though it is too early to start them indoors.

This winter's thick layer of snow may mean a longer wait for gardeners who are itching to get at the soil in spring. A slow and steady melt will replenish the water table from last year's drought. Hrycyna says the ground is going to love it.

"But we have to also see possibly signs of a little bit of snow mould that may be happening. At this time take a look at rabbit tracks because our rabbit damage won't be as extensive on the collars of most of the trees because the trees are under heavy snow. The damage is going to be a much higher (on the trunk) this year."

Hrycyna advises a little bit less light pruning on there.

"We could possibly see a lot of vole damage because there is limitations on the amount of shrubbery that's above that they were able to get at."