Tips for April Gardening

Though it seems old man winter is a bit more stubborn about releasing his grip this year, he will let go eventually so you can start gardening. Be ready to hit the ground running this spring by following these April gardening tips.

Plan Your Year

If you haven't already laid out your plan for the upcoming gardening season, you still have a bit of time left. Here are some tasks that you will want to have finished in April if you hope to stay on top of things:

• Order (maybe with rush delivery) or pick out bulbs.
• Start seedlings to be planted outdoors when the temperature permits.
• Get your plots planned and staked out.

Do the Heavy Work

Keep the rising temperatures of May and June in mind and get some of that heavy lifting done while temperatures are still mild. Some heavy work you can do in April includes:

• Remove leaves and debris from the winter months.
• Till the ground in preparation for planting.
• Perform any annual maintenance tasks on equipment and tools that you have put off all winter.

Fertilize, Plant and Prune

For some plants, April is still a bit too early for planting, but that doesn't have to stop you from getting your hands in the soil with some early season garden tasks. Here is some gardening you can do in April:

• Apply fertilizers and pest control into the soil.
• Prune plants, shrubs and trees that require late pruning.
• The average end-of-frost date for zone 5 is April 15th, so you can start planting some perennials and some varieties of roses in the last two weeks of the month.

Those who are itching to get their fingers in the soil don't have to wait until May. You can get a lot of heavy gardening work out of the way in April before it gets too hot and you can even get some seeds in the ground. Contact us to learn what gardening tools and equipment J&R Feeds carries as well as advice concerning seed varieties you can plant in April.