Welcome to gardening in Indianapolis

Peonies in bloom, the state flower of Indiana

Welcome to Indianapolis, Indiana, the capital of Indiana, located in the midwestern part of the United States, the heartland, the crossroads of America. It's my home, where I live and garden in a tiny place I call May Dreams Gardens.

I’m pleased to begin this journey as your Indianapolis Gardening Examiner, bringing you information about gardening in and around Indianapolis!

Did you know that  David Letterman is from Indianapolis? He is! And so with apologies to Dave, I’m offering my Top Ten Reasons You Would Love to Garden in Indianapolis.

10. Good Soil. Generally soil is a brown silt loam or a maybe a clay silt loam. Most gardeners end up with pretty good dirt for planting by adding a bit of compost and other organic material.

9. 150 Frost Free Days. Our last frost of the spring is generally around May 10th or Mother’s Day and our first frost of the fall is around October 10th, giving us 150 days to grow our vegetable gardens and annual flowers.

8. USDA Zone 5 Hardiness.   The really good plants for the garden are hardy in Zone 5 and warmer. There are a lot of wonderful plants that  we can grow here.

7. Good Rainfall. Our average annual rainfall is close to 40 inches so we can often get by without a lot of extra watering during the growing season.

6. Autumn. We have great leaf color on our deciduous trees and shrubs in the fall. Many gardeners and other people just wanting to see good fall foliage colors go south of here to a place called  Brown County  to see some of the best fall color around and enjoy strolling among quaint shops.

5. Winter Break. We get a nice long rest from gardening in the winter time, which makes us appreciate our growing season that much more.

4. Good Garden Centers. Our city has some good garden centers and a few little out of the way places to buy plants. Not all of them offer beautiful display gardens like  the Avon Gardens  on the west side, but you generally don’t have to go too far to buy a decent plant.

3. Good Public Gardens. We have some nice strolling gardens to take your mind off your own weed patch or to give you ideas on what to plant in your own garden. These include  White River Gardens, the  historic gardens on the grounds of the Indianapolis Art Museum,  Garfield Park and Conservatory, and just up the highway in West Lafayette is Purdue University and the  Horticulture Gardens.

2. A Great Mid-Sized City. We aren’t the biggest city around but we have an NFL team, the Indianapolis Colts; an NBA team, the Indiana Pacers; and a place called “the track” where they run a race on Memorial Day Weekend called the Indianapolis 500. Perhaps you’ve heard of it? These are great diversions when it is too cold or we are too tired to garden!

And the number one reason You Would Love to Garden in Indianapolis....

1. Lilacs and Peonies. Our winters get cold enough so that in the spring we can enjoy the heavenly scent of lilacs in bloom and be amazed by the beauty of our state flower, the peony.