April gardening tips

*Stay out of the garden if the soil is wet.  We have clay soil which is already compacted.  If you work this soil it will just make it worse.  The plants can not survive without oxygen.  Test the soil by squeezing a handful into a lump, then push your thumb into the lump.  If it dents like modeling clay, it is to wet.  If it crumbles, then it good to work with.  Maybe incorporate some good soil into the clay BUT do not fill the hole with just good soil or the water can not drain away through the clay soil and the roots will rot.  *(I had this tip at the bottom but with all the rain I decided to move it to the top)

After your spring flower bulbs have finished you should deadhead them BUT do not cut back the green foliage.  These green leaves are what provides the bulb with its food for the next year.

It is a great time to select and plant fruit trees and berry plants (and we have some at the nursery).  Fruits and berries do best when planted in full sun.

Perennial plants should be set out this month so they may get established before the hot weather comes in.


Get the flower beds ready for spring. Summer annuals will do much better if planted in well prepared beds.  Yes, it is too early to plant but it is not to early to get those beds ready.

Prune your Forsythia after it has finished blooming.

Now is a good time to plant ground covers.  If you have an area that is susceptible to erosion these work great.  Also for areas of shade they provide low maintenance landscape instead of grass.  Some examples are periwinkle, ajuga, and bugleweed.

If you have any house plants they should be repotted.  Scrub an old pot before reusing, and repot in good potting soil.  Wait one month to fertilize them!!

For my customers that I talked with about storing your fuchsias and geraniums over the winter, you may bring them out after all danger of frost has passed.  Trim them back, fertilize them and re-pot if needed.  Water them well.  They will be huge in no time with the established root system they have.

Spring is in the air!!

Is it just me or has this winter seemed to last forever?  We sure did have our share of snow this winter and my kids loved every bit of it.  It is spring and tonight we are seeing temperatures in the low 30's. Although I know you are anxious to plant it really is not quiet time yet.  We are aware that some bigger stores already have all the beautiful annuals sitting around but they have been shipped in from warmer climates like Georgia and Florida.  Please remember that our average last frost date is April 17th.  If you trust the Almanac (we do) it says the second half of April will be unusually cold too.  So please keep in mind that whatever you buy early you may need to be able to bring it in and out of the house for it to last long enough for it to be safe to stay outside.  

Tomorrow I hope to get some pictures posted of the greenhouse.  We are very excited to have new guniea impatiens and ivy geraniums this year!