There are so many things to do this time of year! Our list might help keep you on track.
- Prune evergreens
- Spread a high-nitrogen fertilizer for broadleaf and needle leaf evergreens
- Finish planting dahlias, gladiolas and lilies
- Plant annuals such as asters, cosmos, marigolds, and zinnias
- Deadhead spring flowering bulbs, but don’t cut off green foliage for a few weeks to provide bulb with food for next year’s flowers
- Cut back forsythia after blooming (cut back a third of the oldest canes to ground level, then one third of remaining branches by one third of their height)
- Wait until mid to late May before planting the warmer weather crops like tomatoes, squash, cucumber, pumpkins and peppers.
- Pansies, Snapdragons, Dianthus, Petunias, Geraniums, Fuchsias and Impatiens should be ready to plant by mid month. Toward the end of the month, it should be warm enough to plant out the more tender annuals like Salvia, Zinnias, Marigolds, Lobelia.
- Check to see if your house plants are rootbound. Water them thoroughly and carefully remove them from their pots. If the roots have compacted around the outside of the rootball, it is time to repot. Carefully examine your houseplants for pests and problems. It is much easier to fight an insect infestation or disease in its early stages than to wait.
- The first flowers you see every spring are weeds. Eliminate the weeds (roots and all), before they have a chance to go to seed, or you will be fighting them for years to come!
