What flowers to plant in late March and early April

It's the cool season, although recent temperatures put that in question. That doesn't matter. It's time to plant cool season annuals. They need cool temperatures to develop and thrive. Cool nights help with that. Do not wait until Mother's Day to plant cool season flowers. By then, it's actually too late for some of them. They'll just barely get going before the heat of summer causes them to decline.

Inevitably, we will face more frosts or snow. If it sinks much below freezing, you'll need to cover just to be safe.

The one cool season flower you don't need to worry about is the pansy. Pansies are tough and can withstand any cold fronts that might yet threaten. You don't even need to cover if night temperatures dip below freezing or if we receive more snow.

Pansies are available in many colors and invite combinations in pots or in the ground with other cool season plants. Bright orange or yellow calendulas look great with blue pansies. Add some white sweet alyssum and that combination really pops. Sometimes it's very effective to plant a single color of pansy in a pot for maximum impact.

I use the same plants over and over in pots and add new ones to the mix. The result is that all the pots relate to one another. Some of my favorite cool season plants for containers include sweet-scented stock, snapdragon, nemesia, primrose, dianthus and ornamental kale.

You can also plant strawberries. These tasty fruits can be a challenge to grow. They send out runners and escape from their beds. Squirrels often harvest them before we do. I grow strawberries in patio pots to keep them contained. They can also be more easily protected from squirrels. Try an ever-bearing variety such as 'Ozark' that keeps producing all season.