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By Rebecca Fending
Are you looking forward to starting your garden this year? Knowing how, when, and what to plant can make gardening seem like it’s more trouble than it’s worth. Postponing your gardening begins a cycle that the Chicago Cubs live by: there’s always next year. However, learning spring planting details can help bring life back to the idea of summer gardening. So don’t put your gardening off until next year. Here are a few great spring gardening tips from Suave Yards that will turn your garden from passable to breathtaking in a matter of weeks:
Get Rid of Debris for the Best Gardening Results
Whether it’s bits from surrounding trees or getting rid of unwanted weedy growths, clearing your garden area promises a great yield throughout the season. If you skip right to planting, the debris that is worked into the dirt can inhibit plant growth, specifically during the sprouting stage. If you don’t clear away the debris, dead or intrusive growths can keep your plants from sprouting or growing beyond their current size. However, it is recommended that you keep fallen leaves (so long as they aren’t in a heaping pile) in your garden area as they provide a natural source of nutrients for plants.
Trim Away Dead or Unhealthy Growth
As plants grow in the spring, they also outgrow both their winter skin and older growth. In order to keep up with the way your garden wants to grow, make sure to trim and prune leaves, branches, and deadheads. Keeping old growth on a plant keeps it from recognizing that it should bloom new growth. For example, limp stems on flowers often indicate that there is a bug infestation within that stem. In order to save the rest of your plant, make sure you remove limp or sickly-looking bits from the core growth. Be sure to keep new buds and blooms, otherwise, you may leave your plant open to various sorts of infestations.
Grow Your Plants Indoors
Spring plants stand the best chance of survival and beauty when they’re first sprouted indoors. Spring weather can be a bit tricky to navigate as it can go from 65 degrees to frost in a matter of hours. Subjecting a sprouting plant to warmth, frost, and back again will shock the plant and keep it from growing beyond its initial sprout. Not only that, but your neighborhood furry friends such as rabbits, birds, and sometimes cats see the sprouting from seeds as free food*. Growing your seeds indoors until they’re developed enough to withstand external stressors ensures that you’ll have a full and lively garden during the warmer months.
*To keep your plants from being eaten or chewed after they’re planted in late spring, invest in chicken wire or some sort of fencing to help keep neighbor pests out of your growing garden.
While gardening is a great way to enjoy spring and summer weather, it can also be a difficult hobby to navigate in terms of doing everything “right”. The reward of growing your plants from seeds and being able to share their fruits and blooms outweighs the frustrations of cultivating the garden. When in doubt, consult the internet for tips from fellow gardeners. But be warned; too much of a good thing (planting advice and pointers) can turn sour (postponing gardening for next year). Check out our printed magazine for regular gardening infographics from Florida State Universe to make your planting easier no matter the time of year!
