Warmer weather means spending more time outdoors including tending to your garden. If your garden is looking less than ideal from cold winter months, now’s the time to spruce it up for the warm seasons ahead. We share easy tips that will help you get your garden get in its best shape for spring and summer.
1. Remove Debris
Prepping your garden for spring and summer is much easier when you start with a clean yard and garden. Before you start any other gardening tasks, remove any debris like leaves and other dead plants, as well as weeds to help refresh your garden. Don’t forget to remove debris from gutters, flower beds and any undergrowth from your yard.
2. Clean and Sharpen Gardening Tools
We’re all guilty of it – you probably tossed your garden tools in the garage or shed without cleaning them last year. Now is a good time to bring those tools out to clean and sharpen so they’re ready for all the gardening you’ll be doing during the warm months ahead.
3. Prune Plants and Shrubs
Pruning is essential for maintaining a healthy garden. It removes any dead wood, allowing for new growth, and helps maintain plant health. You should prune plants frequently, but the start of spring is a great time to do it to give your garden a new, clean look.
4. Keep Pests Away
Before anything starts to bloom, make sure you put something in place to keep pests away from your plants. You can keep slugs away by adding a barrier like copper tape or even eggshells. You can also spray a hot pepper mixture on plants so they taste bad to pests. There are many ways you can naturally deter pests from your garden, so choose what works best for you.
5. Refresh and Feed Soil
Winter will cause your soil to dry out, so it will most likely need a refresh. You can easily do this by adding a layer of topsoil, compost, manure or other organic material. Along with adding nutrients to the soil, you can till the soil to mix organic matter and break up the old soil.
6. Add Mulch
To help prevent weeds from growing back, add a layer of mulch. A few inches of mulch will also help prevent plant disease and will keep moisture in the plant bed. To help protect plants, leave some space around roots to prevent plants from rotting.
7. Plant New Flowers
Now, that your yard is prepped, it’s time to beautify it with new flowers and plants. We recommend perennials that can withstand a few winter seasons. Flowers that grow best depends on what zone you live in, but the flowers below are a few examples of what grows easily in nearly any climate:
Daylilies
Creeping thyme
Balloon flower
Tulips
Clematis
Peonies
These simple tips will prepare your garden and outdoor space so you can enjoy it to its fullest during spring and summer.