Pansies are such a darling flower. I love it when people call their petals “faces” as if they are smiling little flower people straight out of The Wizard of Oz.  It is September so it was with great surprise when I saw them for sale at the local garden shop.  Pansies are spring flowers, we all know that.  They are happy little flowers perched on a spry little stalk signaling spring.

Every good farm has a bed of them planted by April. Out in Lancaster County, you can buy the regular market packs or you can get field dug pansies.  Field Dug Pansies are bonus pansies in my opinion. These are pansies grown from seed early in the season on the farm and planted out in that good rich fertile farming soil. Then when they are fat and hearty they dig them up with all that soil attached to the roots and put them in boxes.  Heck, I’d buy them just to get some of that rich dirt into my nutrient poor soil.  I always try to buy the field dug ones if I can get them although you will generally get a variety of colors in one box.  If you want all one color it is usually better to get the market packs.  Of course,  you don’t get the good soil with all the good cow poop in it.  Decisions, decisions.   Now to the icicle part, which has nothing at all to do field dug pansies but now you know.  I just planted my first batch of Icicle Pansies.  You plant them in the fall, they winter over, and viola in the spring they “spring” back to life.  Got to love that.  Plant them once and get two seasons of color. You know that is right up my proverbial “just get it done” alley.  Want to know more? Of course you do, so go to www.iciclepansies.com