Five days ago was the official start of spring. I know that for some people the snow is still on the ground, and with this last front that came through some of you even have fresh snow. But down here in the south, spring is in full swing now. We have butterflies and dragonflies (as well as other flying insects) in the air, grass is growing again, trees are turning green, and birds are molting into their breeding plumage. There are wildflowers popping up everywhere, with more and more species showing up each day. In this area I always know that spring is here to stay when I see two flowers in large numbers. The first ones are the Drummond’s phlox and the second ones are the azaleas. Both will often start to bloom very early in the spring and may get frozen back a time or two, but once they are out in good numbers, spring is here to stay. Actually, the azaleas are already starting to go by on some of the plants that started flowering early, but the phlox will be going strong through the entire spring and into the early summer. Yes, down here, I think that spring is here to stay!