For home gardeners, the warmer months are such a highly cherished time of year. Whether you’re cultivating annuals or perennials in garden beds or containers, there’s nothing more exciting than watching your plot of land transform into a lush flowering garden. But first, you’ll first need to set your yard up for success.
In spring, there’s a certain window of time that can make or break your summer garden. If you lay the groundwork too early, your flowers can suffer from frost damage or premature growth, but if you wait too long, you’ll miss your planting window.
To properly set the stage, you’ll need to strike while the iron is hot, which tends to be late April—the frost risk has faded, the soil is workable, plants are ready to grow, and there’s just enough time to beat weeds, pests, and summer stress. “When you thoughtfully tend to your garden in April, you’re not just checking tasks off a list—you’re giving your plants a strong root system before the heat arrives, you’re outcompeting weeds before they seed, and you’re establishing the bones and rhythm of the garden that will carry you through summer,” says Linda Vater, Oklahoma City-based garden designer and stylist and the owner of Garden Inspired Living.
If you want to create a garden that’s brimming with vibrant, long-lasting blooms (not just one that gets by), be sure to tackle these six gardening tasks before May rolls around.
Spruce Up Your Space
Before your summer garden comes to life, give your spring landscape a quick cleanup. Once temperatures are consistently mild, clear away any dead steams, decaying leaves, and winter damage from your garden to ward off pests and diseases and encourage new growth.
Abdullah Durmaz – Getty Images
Prune for Health and Shape
With a pair of sharp, clean shears, snip away dead material from perennials, shrubs, and ornamental grasses to clear the way for fresh shoots. You can also lightly prune (for shape) any shrubs that’ll bloom later in the summer. Just make sure to steer clear of spring-blooming flowers. “If you cut back your azaleas, forsythia, or lilacs in April, you’ve just removed this year’s flowers,” Vater says. “Those get pruned after they bloom, not before.”
Nourish Your Soil
Feeding your soil is just as important as feeding your plants. Since winter depletes the soil of its nutrients, refreshing and nourishing it will pave the way for healthier stems. “Top-dress your beds with a quality compost, refresh mulch to about two inches (keeping it away from crowns and trunks), and give perennials and shrubs a balanced slow-release fertilizer,” Vater recommends.
Divide and Relocate Perennials
In late April, you can more easily gauge your perennials’ progress. For any overcrowded plants or poor performers, now’s the time to divide and transplant them. “Lift, split, replant, share with a friend,” Vater suggests. “This is also when I walk the garden with a notebook and make decisions about what’s earning its keep and what needs to move.” Thanks to cooler spring weather, these perennials will reestablish quickly and come back bigger and stronger.
Sergiy Trofimov Photography – Getty Images
Plant Hardy Flowers
For annuals and perennials that can tolerate the cold, now’s the time to get them in the ground. While you can prep for tender annuals, planting them during this window of time will only backfire. “The most common mistake I see is planting tender annuals too early, because we get one glorious 78-degree weekend and everyone loses their composure at the garden center,” Vater says. “A late frost or a cold snap will undo all of that enthusiasm overnight.”
Apply a Light Layer of Mulch
Lightly scattering mulch atop your soil will keep roots hydrated and prevent weeds from growing. Keep in mind that your technique matters. “Piling mulch up against trunks and crowns, in what I call volcano mulching, traps moisture, invites rot, and suffocates the very plants you’re trying to protect.”
You Might Also Like
Comments are closed.