Lenten Rose

Believe it or not, spring is coming. March is  the month of anticipation in the park. Visitors who walk there year round will be on the lookout for the first signs of the season. Some of the earliest plants to flower are the hellebores, also known as Lenten Roses because of their their bloom time. When the snow melts, flower buds can be seen between evergreen leaves. You can find several varieties in the perennial garden, along with early blooming dwarf daffodils.

Cornellian Cherry Dogwood

There are many species of dogwoods planted throughout the park. The Cornelian Cherry dogwood, a small tree, is one of the early ones. It’s yellow flowers open before any leaves appear. Red twigged and gold twigged dogwood shrubs have colorful branches that stand out against the late snows. The native American dogwood and the Japanese dogwood trees bloom later in the spring.

Saucer Magnolia

Saucer magnolias produce fat, fuzzy buds that open into large pink and white flowers, also blooming before the tree leafs out. In central Ohio, there is always a chance the blossoms will be damaged by a late freeze.

Witch Hazel

More early spring color is provided by a variety of witch hazels. Described as either large shrubs or small trees, they flower early in shades of red, yellow or orange.

March is also the beginning of the volunteer season in the park. The public is invited help Columbus Recreation and Parks garden staff and volunteers with the annual Spring Pruning event. This is when we assess the winter damage to rose plants and decide how far back they should be pruned. Some years the canes are still alive a good distance from the crown and other years they need to be cut almost to ground level.

Starting at 8:30 am on Saturday, March 28, we will meet in the volunteer office at the south end of the enclosed shelterhouse. Volunteers are asked to dress warmly and bring garden gloves and hand pruners. Coffee and pastries will be served.  No gardening experience is necessary- we will do on the job training. Regardless of the weather (barring pouring rain), we will work for about 3 hours. It’s a good way to get into rose gardening, since the bushes are very forgiving at this time of year. Pruning gets a bit more complex later in the season. Regular volunteer work groups begin in April in all the rose gardens and the herb and perennial gardens. Hope to see you in the park!

If you have questions, contact me at volunteers@parkofroses.org.