It’s that time of year again – time to get out in the yard and begin prepping for the best yard on the block. As spring brings happiness to winter-worn horticulturalists here are some tips to get the ball rolling on luscious lawns and vibrant plants and flowers.
Survey the yard
Make note of tree limbs that should be removed or cabled, especially those that overhang structures. Hire an arborist to maintain large trees. Check fences, steps, and pathways for disrepair caused by freezing and thawing.
Prep tools and plants
Tune up and purchase tools so everything is ready when things start growing. Choose and order new plants for the garden, trees, and shrubs for spring planting.
Start winter cleanup of the lawn when the grass is no longer sopping wet and planting beds stop being a sea of mud. Cut down last year’s perennial foliage. Rake mulch from beds planted with bulbs before foliage appears, and refresh mulch in other planting areas after soil warms. Rake your lawn to get rid of dead growth, stray leaves, twigs and winter debris and let light and air seep to the soil level, encouraging the grass to grow.
Re-seed bare or damaged patches of lawn. Scratch up the soil with a rake first. Mix a shovel of soil with a couple of scoops of grass seed and spread in the patch you’re fixing. Rake level and keep well watered until seeds germinate and the new grass establishes.
Get ready to mow
Send the mower and leaf blower for servicing, or if you have the right tools, sharpen the mower blades yourself. Refill your mower with oil, install fresh spark plugs, and lubricate moving parts if necessary. Sharp blades cut better and leave your lawn grass healthier.
Prune trees and shrubs
Remove dead, damaged, and diseased branches from woody plants. Prune cold-damaged wood after plants resume spring growth. Prune spring-blooming shrubs and trees after flowering.
Take a soil test
Check soil pH with a home soil- test kit, taking several samples from different planting areas for an accurate reading. Enrich soil as necessary: Add dolomitic lime to raise the pH or elemental sulfur to lower the pH.
Prepare new beds
Clear the planting area as soon as soil can be worked, removing sod or weeds and debris. Spread a layer of compost or well-rotted manure and any amendments over soil, and cultivate with a spading fork.
Plant
Plant bare-root trees, shrubs, and perennials by early spring. Choose a cool, cloudy day if possible. Transplant container-grown plants anytime during the growing season except midsummer; be sure to water them thoroughly. Sow seeds of cool-season flowers like sweet peas, poppies, and calendula, and vegetables such as lettuce, parsley, and spinach.
Fertilize
Apply balanced fertilizer (6-6-6 or 8-8-8), fish emulsion, or other soil amendments recommended by soil-test results around trees and shrubs when new growth appears. Spread high-acid fertilizer and pine needle mulch around acid-loving shrubs like azaleas and camellias. Begin fertilizing perennials when active growth resumes.
Use this organic pest control method when the buds are swelling but the leaves haven’t opened yet. Apply when temperatures are between 40 and 70 degrees F.
Source: MarthaStewart.com and flower-gardening-made-easy.com.
Go green by creating a compost heap
The basic ingredients of a compost heap are nitrogen, carbon, oxygen, and water. Nitrogen-rich materials include most fresh, green forms of vegetable matter, such as kitchen peelings, green leaves, and grass clippings.
A simple, open heap is the traditional and most common way to compost materials, but its exposure to the elements means that heat build-up is slow. Bins are more efficient. A series of three containers will ensure a regular supply: one in the process of being filled, a full one with waste left to decompose, and a third with fully decomposed waste being used as needed on the garden.
Continue adding to the pile throughout the season for rich, homemade compost next spring.
A plastic compost bin, store-bought or improvised from a bottomless garbage can, is useful in limited spaces. Alternate soil layers with waste layers.
In a sunny position, measure out an area at least a yard square. This is the minimum size necessary to generate the required heat in the shortest possible time. The bigger the heap, the more rapidly it generates heat.
Arrange coarse materials, such as sticks, prunings, and bark pieces, to form the base. These will allow air to filter into the center of the heap without smothering the soil surface. You want worms to enter the heap, and smothering the soil discourages them.
Place 2 to 4 inches of other organic matter, such as kitchen waste, grass clippings mixed with dry leaves, animal manure, or weed-free garden loam, over this.
Lightly water each layer with a fine spray and build further layers of material four inches deep.
For every four-inch layer of waste, add a handful of blood meal and bonemeal or a spadeful of manure. Turn the heap once every two weeks with a pitchfork.
