Spring sunshine makes everything bloom

Spring is definitely in the air. I can feel it, I can see it and I can smell it.

The warmer temperatures are causing every growing thing to grow — and that includes people as well as plants.

I was fortunate enough to take a few days away from the office to spend some quality spring time with the family, and I believe my kids have grown taller in the past couple of weeks.

Just like the greenery sprouting everywhere, the girls seem to be reaching skyward toward the sun. And when they stand up after lounging in the sun, they look taller.

I’m sure it’s just my imagination, but… it could be my spring fever.

Every year about this time, I get an uncontrollable urge to grow things.

Seeing the wildflowers sprouting along the highway each day as I drive through town doesn’t help matters any. Even my allergies, which are quick to tell me there’s lots in bloom, don’t curb my desires to dig my fingers into the dirt and plant something — anything.

Nor do past failures in the gardening department. Fortunately, I haven’t had so many of those that it discourages me from trying again, with the exception of squash. No matter what I do, I can’t seem to get squash, especially zucchini, to grow.

So this year I have decided to focus on flowers and plants. And I have Patty Sullivan of the Parks and Recreation Department to thank for that.

Shortly after my arrival in town, she introduced me to the Boulder City/Hoover Dam Museum’s hollyhock program. Designed to teach first-graders about how the 31ers settled in the city and created a sense of community through their hollyhocks, seeds are given to the youngsters for them to plant and create a link to the past.

Patty graciously gave me a few seeds, which I planted in a pot in my backyard. It had been years since I grew anything from seeds — the last time probably was when I was in the first grade — and I checked on them daily to see if they were growing.

It may seem silly, but I have been as giddy as a first-grader watching my seeds sprout and turn into plants. Not a day goes by that I don’t check on their progress. If they were children, I would have created a system to mark their height changes.

My next step is to transfer my little seedlings into bigger pots or a special place in the yard so they can bloom and flourish.

And so they wouldn’t get lonely, I have planted roses, petunias, dianthus, hibiscus, marigolds, lobelias and strawberries. Some habits are hard to break.

Yes, spring is a special time, even more so in Boulder City, which celebrates the season’s arrival with a two-day Jamboree. Scheduled for May 3 and 4, the event is shaping up to be one of the bright spots on the annual calendar.

It’s a great place to spend time with your family. I’ll be bringing mine, except for my hollyhock babies. They will remain safely at home, growing in the sunshine.