Spring is almost here and what better time for some early spring gardening tips.
The Lawhead Team knows we all take pride in how our home looks and with warmer weather ahead of us, that means more time spent outside. We would like to share some helpful early spring gardening tips with our readers.
Fruit Trees – Most fruit trees, including apples, pears, cherries, and peaches, benefit from being thinned every year. This encourages a more open habit that keeps the trees healthy and makes it easier to harvest the produce. The best time to prune is before new growth develops in early spring.
Rose Bushes – Prune your roses just as or before new growth emerges from the canes. Cutting your roses back encourages strong, healthy shoots that will produce lots of blooms. A trim also gives the plants a more open habit, which helps them resist diseases such as black spot.
Planting Trees and Shrubs – Spring’s cool, moist conditions make it the perfect time to add trees and shrubs to your yard for some spring gardening. There are many reasons to grow trees and shrubs: They add value and beauty to your property; they can shade your home, reducing your summer energy bills; and if you select fruit-bearing varieties such as apples or blueberries, they supply food for your family. The most common mistake when planting trees and shrubs during spring gardening is planting them too deeply. The root flare, where the roots meet the trunk, should be at or just above the soil level.
Annuals – Annual flowers fall into two categories: varieties that like it warm and varieties that like it cool. Most cool-season annuals you plant during spring gardening fade when summer heat arrives; replace them with heat-loving varieties, such as petunia, pentas, nasturtium, and lantana, for color all summer long.
Ornamental Grasses – Cut back ornamental grasses to about 4 inches tall before or just as they put out new growth when spring gardening. This is also the time to divide ornamental grasses, if you wish to do so.
Planting Seeds – Growing plants from seed is a great way to save money. You can gain a few extra weeks if you start them early indoors, or keep it simple by sprinkling seeds in moist, loosened soil outdoors. If you don’t use all the seeds you purchase for spring gardening, you can store most varieties in your freezer for planting next spring. A cool, dry place keeps them viable longer.
Vegetables – While tomatoes, peppers, and squash love hot summer weather, you can plant carrots, radishes, spinach, and other cool-season varieties while there’s still a bit of frost in the air. They’ll withstand light freezes easily making them perfect for spring gardening.
Weeding – Weeding is usually voted gardening’s most arduous task, and as such, it’s often put off. But pull, hoe, or otherwise remove weeds while they’re little, and you’ll make the job considerably easier. Small root systems are less work to pull, and if you get them before they go to seed, you’ll have fewer weeds in the future.
Mulch – When the soil has warmed up and dried out in spring, spread a 2-inch-deep layer of mulch (such as shredded wood, pine needles, or compost) over the soil surface to discourage weeds in your planting beds and hold moisture once hot summer days arrive.
Do you have some early spring gardening tips? Share them with us on our blog!