Early Spring
Fruitful Fruit Trees
To encourage new growth and keep your fruit trees healthy, prune before new growth develops. Fruit trees, including peaches, pears, apples and cherries will appreciate being thinned each year. It will also make harvesting easier.
Move the Mulch
The winter mulch you placed around the roots of your plants to keep them from heaving (rising roots) needs to be removed when the frosty winter leaves.
Keep some mulch nearby in case Jack Frost unseasonable shows up so you can toss a blanket back on your plants.
Robust Roses
Pruning roses before the first growth appears on the branches, in just about all regions, will promote robust, hearty sprouts that will bloom after bloom throughout the season. Slimming back the plant will also generate a healthy environment for the plant and fight aliments that attack like black spots.
Ornamental Grasses – The Tall and Short of It!
A trim to about 4 inches will help ornamental grass varieties flourish. Prune the old growth or just as new growth begins to emerge. It is okay to take bigger plants and split them to add more coverage in your garden.
Leave the trimmings on top of your compost pile, the birds will find them to make nests for their spring arrivals.
Early or Mid-Spring
Some Like it Hot – Some Like it Cold
There are flowers that don’t mind the cool spring air, such as pansies, violas, snapdragon, poppy, and sweet alyssum aren’t adverse to a little chill. Go ahead and plant these in containers, along borders and in beds in your gardens to add some early color. When the summer heat arrives, these flowers tend to fade. Trade them out for some that like the hotter summer waves. Try petunias, lantana, pentas, and nasturtium.
A Variety of Vegetables
Some vegetables are okay to plant while there may still be a chill in the air. Some cool-season varieties include spinach, carrots and radishes. Planting these in early to mid-spring will yield a healthy treat in your fresh salads. If old Jack Frost shows up and temps drop down into the low 20’s, cover the plants up for protection.
Squash, peppers and tomatoes are sunbathers who love the summer heat. So it is safe to plant them towards the end of spring after the last chance of frost.
Mid-Spring
Bring Back the Mulch
As spring moves into the warmer days and the soil begins to get dried out, spread a layer of mulch (pine needles, bark, or compost), about 2 inches will suffice. This will help hold moisture in and deter weeds from contaminating your beautiful beds.
Mid to Late Spring
Trim Spring Blooming Shrubs
As summer begins, your seasonal flowering shrubs like lilacs, camellias and forsythias should be trimmed if need be. Their life-cycle doesn’t stop after the blooms are gone, they will be generating next years blooms shortly after this years have gone. By giving them a trim, you will foster beautiful foliage for next year.
