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April 2007 Garden Tips

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“I love spring anywhere, but if I could choose I would always greet it in a garden.”– Ruth Stout

• Now is a great time to repot those houseplants you have neglected all winter. The days are getting longer and they are starting to grow more. Repot to a larger container no bigger than one size larger than they are presently in.

• Everyone has spring fever at this time of year. Try to resist the temptation of working on your lawn too soon. Do not attempt to do any lawn work until you no longer leave footprints when walking on it. You may do more harm than good.

• After the snow has melted and daytime temperatures are above freezing, begin removing winter mulch from your plants. Do not remove all at once, but gradually. This helps the ground to thaw slowly and prevents your perennials from heaving. In addition, the removal of mulch will allow the crowns to dry out and prevent crown rot. Do not discard the mulch right away; should freezing temperatures return, recover your perennials.

• Cut back perennial ornamental grasses to within 2-3 inches of the ground.

• Plant spring bulb and tuber plants such as gladiolus, canna and calla lilies, caladium and dahlia for midsummer bloom.

• Seed your lawn—mid-April marks the beginning of the six week window (through the end of May) when seeding yields the best results.

• Late April is the time to plant roses. Make sure not to buy plants that have broken dormancy.

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• A colorful cyclamen, azalea, hydrangea, mum, orchid or many other blooming plants will make those enticingly warm days of April seem much shorter before you can work in the yard and garden.

• Check your power tools, such as the lawn mower, and have them serviced if you didn't do it over the winter.

• Bring garden tools out of storage and examine them for rust or other damage. Clean and sharpen them if you did not do so before you put them away in the fall.

• Clean up the garden once snow has melted. Rake debris off lawns and prune back old perennial growth.

• Avoid working your soil until it has thawed and dried out a bit. If you squeeze the soil into a ball and it holds its shape but breaks apart easily when pressed with a thumb or finger, it is ready to work.

• Dig in compost, manure and other amendments in planting areas when the soil is dry enough.

• Cool season turf grasses like Kentucky Bluegrass will start to green up. This is a good time to aerate lawns and fertilize using a nitrogen fertilizer. Apply pre-emergent herbicide to lawn areas to control crabgrass.

• Clean out your water garden and check the pump to be sure it’s working properly.

• Mulch garden pathways to suppress weeds.

• Check trellis and support wires on climbers before the plants are fully developed. Winds, frost and snow can often dislodge supports during the winter.

• This is a great time of year to go outside and cut a few branches to force indoors, especially forsythia...but other trees and shrubs are cool, too, like willow and lilac branches. In only a few days, buds pop and fill a vase with greens or blossoms. It's fun to watch something develop that normally goes by so fast outside.

• Everyone is starved for color in the yard. April is a great month to get some color in your garden by planting pansies. Pansies will withstand an amazing amount of cold temperatures.

• Decorate for spring! Get your outdoor room ready to enjoy.

• Create outdoor spring containers for your decks and patios.

• Pull back the soil mound if your roses wintered above ground.

• Start tomato seeds in the last half of April.

• Get parsley plants in the ground.

• Fertilize spring-flowering bulbs when the flowers fade.

• Begin spraying with a general fungicide to prevent apple scab. Use a product that is listed for apples. Make the first application when the leaves of your trees are just showing green. Spray again when the flowers show color but before bees are present and spray a third time after the flower petals fall to the ground.

Resources:

Gertens
651-450-1501

Devon's Gardens
763-323-2096

Scenic Specialties Landscape Center
320-363-7479

America's Best Flowers
608-222-2269

Bachman’s, Inc.
612-861-7311

Linder's Garden Center
651-488-1927

Villa Landscapes
Burnsville • 952-894-1553
Maple Grove • 763-425-9277
Oakdale • 651-773-7440