Thumbing through pictures in seed catalogs gets many a plant lover through the wintry months of January and February, and Marie Iannotti tips us off on some great new plants for 2008. But now that March is here, my activities gravitate more and more to the outdoors -- in search of signs of spring.

As someone who spends a lot of time outdoors, searching for signs of spring in March and April is something of an annual ritual with me. Here are some of the signs I search for every spring and pre-spring in my native New England:

• Pussy willows
• Skunk cabbage
• Red-winged blackbirds
• Spring peepers

Perhaps more curious than any of these are the snow fleas. Ever come across a patch of snow in late winter that looks like someone sprinkled it with poppy seeds? Take a closer look, and you'll see those "poppy seeds" are moving!

_{Skunk cabbage photo ©2007 David Beaulieu (licensed to About.com)}

Of course, there's more to spring than traipsing around out in the woods. Some of us have large gardens to clean up, before planting season. Others may be even busier, trying to sell their homes during the spring season. If you fall into either of those camps, you may find some helpful information in one of the following resources:

Spring Cleaning the Flower Garden:
Who doesn't want to be outdoors in spring? Take advantage of the beautiful spring weather and get your garden in shape now, so you can sit back and enjoy it all summer.
15 Tips for Selling Your Home in Spring
Want to learn how to sell a home in the spring real estate market? Here are the top 15 ways to increase traffic and showings of homes, and beat out the heavy spring competition by winning over spring home buyers at the top of the market.