Simple Steps to Prepare Your Garden for Spring

When the winter months start to wind down, we need to prepare our gardens for Spring. Not only will it result in a more lush landscape, but it will allow you the time to enjoy it rather than working to catch up.

As you start to prepare your garden for spring, here are a few simple steps to make sure things move smoothly.

Water Regularly

One of the ingredients to a healthy lawn is to make sure it is watered on a regular basis. Your lawn should receive about an inch of water per week from either rain or irrigation. To make thing simpler, you can pick up an inexpensive rain gauge to keep track of it.

Mow High and Often

A common rule for cutting grass is to remove less than one third of a blade of grass to make sure it is not stressed. This means if you want 2 1/2 inches of grass height, you should cut it when it reaches 3 1/4 inches. Prior to Spring you should make the decision how high you want your lawn grass.

Remember, tall grass can shadow the soil, keeping it cooler and moist. This will prevent weed seeds from germinating. Make sure to research your grass species to find what the correct growth height is.

Fertilize and Weed Control

Spring is the perfect times to make sure your lawn is fertilized correctly and apply a pre-emergent to help keep the weeds under control before they start. Regular feedings of fertilizer will help make sure your lawn is healthy year round.

Don't Neglect Trees and Shrubs

When people begin to focus on preparing their garden for Spring, trees and shrubs are sometimes forgotten. Make sure to prune off any dead, diseased, or broken branches. If you need to replace the mulch, remove the old material and replace it with fresh mulch.

Then you can compost the old mulch for other uses in the garden. You can apply an all-purpose fertilizer around the drip line of the plants to help make sure they receive the proper nutrient.

Bring Beauty Back to your Flower Gardens

Another area to focus on while you prepare your garden for spring is your flower beds. Your first step should be to replace out any old mulch from the beds or the soil from your flower boxes.

After you prepare the soil with your choice of organic matter, you can plant cool season flowers and plants. These will be sturdy enough to help survive if there are any late season frosts.

Don't Neglect your Soil

The last piece to your Spring garden preparation has to deal with the condition of your soil. To help improve the fertility and texture of your soil, there are several organic materials you can add.

If you are looking for the nearly perfect soil addition, compost should be your first choice. It improves the fertility of the soil, breaks up clay, improves sand's ability to retain water, and is beneficial to earthworms and microbes.

There are other things you could use like Bonemeal or Bloodmeal, which helps improve the soil's texture. If you have PH issues with your soil, you can use a garden sulfur to help reduce it or add lime to help raise it.

Your summer months should be stress free if you follow this simple guide to preparing your garden for Spring.

Resources

http://www.weekendgardener.net/

http://www.gardenguides.com/