Early Spring Gardening Jobs - The Local Buzz

Early Spring Gardening Jobs by Sue Sargeant, passionate gardener, novice writer.

Spring is one of the busiest times in the garden. Here are some ideas to keep your garden in tip top condition and prepare for the sunny days ahead.

Sue Sargeant

Dead head spring flowering bulbs and make sure you snap off Tulip tips after flowering.
Move and divide Snowdrops whilst still green.
Mulch and give shrubs and Roses a general-purpose fertilizer.
Redefine the edges of the lawns and remove any debris or moss. The moss can be put in old plastic fat ball nets and hung in trees as nesting material for birds.
Prick out seedlings and plant separately in larger pots, ready for planting out in May. Harden off well established seedlings in the cold frame.
Plant large containers with your favourite summer flowering plants. Use leaves in the base, or cardboard cut into pieces to reduce the compost required. Stand on trays to catch any rainfall.

Prune shrubs like Hibiscus which flower after June. Leave early spring flowering shrubs such as Forsythia until they have finished flowering.
Once new shoots appear, remove last years’ stems from perennials such as Penstemon and Echinacea. Large clumps of perennials can be divided in spring or autumn and the off-shoots potted up or replanted. Do this every two to three years to keep them flowering.
Plant out Tomatoes in April when the soil is warm and there is no chance of frost. This can be a bit of a gamble as a cold snap can cause terminal damage to plants. Keep some large plant pots to hand to cover the new plants just in case the temperature drops overnight. Some gardeners leave planting out until May to be sure.
Other early spring gardening jobs include looking after your compost.

First published in the March/April issue of The Local Buzz

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