What's On The Agenda?

Things you could or should be doing in your garden in…

… April

Our frost-free date is approaching (April 15); be aware of potential late spring frosts, and the damage they can inflict, especially on newly planted items. Old sheets or light blankets work well to protect plants in these conditions.

Use wire supports or cages around newly emerging perennials such as peonies and other taller, top-heavy flowers.

Remove stakes and guy wires from trees planted last fall.

Avoid tilling garden beds while soil is very wet as this increases compaction.

Fertilize warm-season grasses (Bermuda, zoysia) after you have cut them twice, using a turf-type slow release fertilizer like Ferti-lome Lawn Food Plus Iron. Cool season grasses (fescue) can also be fertilized now with the same type of fertilizer.

Prune/shear azaleas after flowers fade and apply a slow-release fertilizer. A systemic insecticide can also be applied at this time to prevent many insect issues later in the year, including lace bugs.

Apply systemic insecticides to roses, hackberries, crepe myrtles and many other trees and shrubs to prevent infestations during the growing season.

After our last frost date (April 15), start setting out early spring flowers, annuals and veggies, especially those started from seed, so they can begin hardening off.

Prune early spring flowering shrubs like forsythia, quince and spirea after the flowers fade.

Water newly transplanted annuals and perennials well until roots are established.

Apply a 1-2” layer of mulch around trees and shrubs, keeping mulch a few inches away from the trunk/crown, and spread in an even layer; do NOT mound like a volcano.