Essential Gardening Tips for Spring
I have been looking forward to being able to say “Spring is here!” and the moment has finally arrived. Although us New Englanders are still facing some lousy, bitter cold (and even a March blizzard, what gives!), March 20th brought with it the first official day of Spring. My backyard in particular needs a lot of help, so I look forward to documenting its progress as we go! In the meantime, keep these essential gardening tips for Spring in mind:
On a nice sunny day, consider taking these steps to get your yard ready for the peak of the season!
Clean Up the Garden
This is probably one of the least fun parts about Spring- the cleanup! The Fall and the Winter wreak havoc on your precious gardens in the sense that there are leaves and weeds everywhere. Be sure to pull out all of the roots so they don’t grow back.
Revitalize your soil
You want to make sure your soil is moist and packed with nutrients before planting anything this Spring. The best way to do this is by adding an organic manure or compost. To be sure you have the proper treatment you may consider having your soil tested so you can add a customized component. People add fertilizer to guarantee healthy soil and longer life for your plants. We will get more into your options with healthy soil in the coming weeks.
Prune Old Plants
The best way to get plants that survived the winter is to give them a good ol’ trim! It’s essentially jump-starting the plants system so it will thrive in the warm sunny days to come. However, do not do this until Mid-April or early May. As you know, March and early April can still bring some cold spells. Trimming back plants too early will leave them vulnerable and will be more likely to die if exposed to freezing temperatures.
Mulch
We’ve seen a few debates over which kind of mulch you should use on your garden, but we’ll get to that. Adding mulch to your garden will help prevent weeds, it will lock in the moisture and will help regulate temperature. Be sure to keep the mulch a few inches away from the stem of the plants so they do not rot!
Get Planting!
Once everything is cleared, revitalized and ready to go- you can start your planting of new shrubs and flowers! We would suggest picking up perennials so you do not need to buy new plants next year (annuals). There are many great Spring plants to choose from such as Pansies, Lilacs and Tulips just to name a few. We will be discussing the importance of paying attention to where you purchase your plants from and how they were treated prior to sale- as many corporate home centers sell plants that have damaging effects on surrounding wildlife. Stay tuned!
Now that Spring has Spring your hands are about to get pretty dirty! Give our Gardener’s Friend Hand Scrub Soap a try and enjoy having soft clean hands after a hard days work!
