It’s time to get down to business! It can be stressful to return to the garden after a long, harsh winter, but it is also a time of relief. Even if the winter chill is still hanging around, there are plenty of jobs to get started on now if you want your garden to be party-ready by the time the weather warms up.
Table of Contents
- 1 8 Priority Tasks for Spring Garden Cleaning
- 1.1 Examine the Yard
- 1.2 Your Perennial Flowers Should Be Mulched and Pruned
- 1.3 Plants that are evergreen or semi-evergreen should be pruned
- 1.4 Pruning Trees and Shrubs at the Appropriate Time
- 1.5 Begin weeding and composting now
- 1.6 As Needed, Test the Soil and Fertilizer
- 1.7 Plants Should Be Staked
- 1.8 Mulch and Trimming
8 Priority Tasks for Spring Garden Cleaning
You’ll be out in your garden the first warm second of spring if you’re a committed gardener. While clearing fallen branches and debris is not harmful, wait until the soil is no longer damp enough to form a ball in your hand before walking on it and compacting it. However, do not put off cleaning for too long. It’s much easier to prune plants before the old growth becomes entangled with the new. For a lovely spring and summer garden, follow these suggestions.
Examine the Yard
Look up and analyze the trees first. Make a list of any tree limbs that need to be cut or cabled, especially those that hang over structures. To keep huge trees in good shape, use an arborist. Assess the mid-level next. Last year’s perennial leaves should be cut down and tossed into the compost pile. After that, there’s the ground plane: Before the foliage shows, rake mulch from bulbs-planted beds, and renew mulch in other planting sites as the soil warms. Finally, give all of your hardscaped areas a once-over: Check for damage caused by freezing and thawing on fences, steps, and pathways.
Your Perennial Flowers Should Be Mulched and Pruned
The first step is to remove any dead annual plants that have survived the winter and compost them. These won’t come back, and any self-seeders will have completed their mission.
If you didn’t prune your perennials back last autumn, they’re probably looking a little scruffy now that spring has arrived. For extra protection, many perennials prefer to be left standing throughout the winter. Herbaceous perennials, on the other hand, will die back to the ground in the winter. If you left your perennials standing last fall, it’s safe to start removing winter mulch and trimming them down to ground level once you detect new growth at the base of the plants.
Plants that are evergreen or semi-evergreen should be pruned
Some perennial plants will never truly go dormant, depending on where you garden, but they may still need to be cleaned up. Epimedium, Hellebores, Heuchera, and bearded iris, for example, keep their leaves throughout the winter. Trim back the tattered foliage in the spring to encourage new growth to emerge.
Pruning Trees and Shrubs at the Appropriate Time
The flower buds on the majority of spring-blooming trees and shrubs were set in the summer or fall of the previous year. Hedge Trimming & Pruning them before they blossom in the spring would mean cutting out this year’s flowers. Learn about the demands of your blossoming trees and prune them appropriately.
Begin weeding and composting now
Early spring is the best time to start proactive weeding measures against weeds. Weed seedlings are considerably easier to take out of damp soil. Weeds should not be composted. They’re going to come back to bite you.
The majority of everything you clean up can be composted. It’s ideal to start afresh pile in the spring and flip and use your previous one. Dispose of any diseased plant material as well as any seed heads, weeds, or other weeds that could create a problem.
As Needed, Test the Soil and Fertilizer
Before you start adding anything to your soil, it’s critical to test it. Check your soil’s pH (alkaline, neutral, or acidic) to evaluate how balanced your soil’s nutrients are and whether any correction steps are needed if you amended your soil in the fall. When most plants have their initial growth surge in the spring, they benefit from good nutrition.
If your soil is already rich and healthy, all you need to do in the spring is add a top dressing of compost, manure, or a complete slow-release organic fertilizer. If you prefer synthetic fertilizers, you can begin using them as soon as your plants begin to show symptoms of new growth.
Plants Should Be Staked
Staking is one of the most time-consuming aspects of gardening. It’s easy to put off staking, but the sooner you do it, the easier it will be on your plants. Sure, they’ll seem unattractive for a few weeks, but consider the difficulties you’ll save by allowing your plants to grow into the stakes rather than trying to cram them in later.
Mulch and Trimming
Mulch is beneficial to your garden in several ways: it conserves water, cools plant roots, enriches the soil, and smothers weeds. Every garden, without a doubt, benefits from a layer of mulch. Before adding more mulch, wait until the soil has warmed up and dried out a little. Keep it away from your plants’ stems and crowns, and if you’re hoping for self-seeding volunteers, give them time to germinate before covering the bed with mulch.
In the spring, Trimming is the final touch. A sharp trimmed edge gives a garden bed a polished appearance. It also keeps your lawn from encroaching on your flower bed. Don’t undervalue the importance of a sharp edge.
Concluding Moment:
Managing your Garden is not at all an easy task, especially Spring Garden Cleaning tasks. It consists of lots of activities with different skills and tools and techniques to be applied as discussed above. We completely understand your pain but there is nothing to worry about. Book our experts today to help you out with every gardening task you think you need an expert touch.
