By and large, spring ephemerals require a bit of trial and error before a gardener can understand how best to use them in the spring garden. By definition, this group of plants emerge in early spring, flower, set seed and enter dormancy all before or around the start of summer. Their strategy is to complete their annual reproductive cycle before the tree canopy is fully leafed-out and competition for sunlight and water becomes more intense. For the gardener, the challenge