If you’re like me you’re more than ready for a beautiful sunny day to get outdoors and work in the garden. Those days have been few and far between so far this year but spring is coming! It could be quicker but it will get here. This time of year I find myself very busy with garden preparation.
Once I finally get to work in the garden here is what I do to get my garden ready:
I cut back dead foliage of perennials and ornamental grasses. I usually leave the foliage on through the winter to help protect the crown of the plant. The extra layers of foliage provide a buffer from the cold temperatures. The ornamental grasses can be cut back to 4-6 inches depending on the size of the plant (The picture to the right is Miscanthus sinensis or Zebra grass). Use the old foliage in your compost bin or as a layer of straw mulch in the vegetable garden. Just be sure there aren’t any unwanted seed heads left or you may end up with switchgrass and tomatoes.- I build new raised beds. Every year I seem to put together a new raised bed or two. A simple raised bed can be pieced together using non-pressure treated lumber (ideally cedar). Don’t make them any wider than 3-4 feet so that I can reach the middle for weeding and harvesting. (I mentioned raised beds in my last post but they are so great for your vegetable garden that they are worth a second mention!)
- I’ve already planted a few seeds in the garden at this point. Spinach, chard, and sugar snap peas were planted over a week ago. Very soon I’ll plant lettuce, radishes and beets.
- I’ll mulch planting beds. I picked up a few bales of pine straw to use on some beds. Pine straw is light, easy to spread, and cheap! I’ll still use hardwood mulch on several areas but the pine straw will help me reduce my budget just a little and I like the look.
- I’m still planning new things and starting new planting beds. My most recent bed was planted with cuttings from my Russian sage. Sometimes they will root just by sticking a piece of the stem into the ground – things don’t get much easier than that! I planted a slope with the cuttings in the hopes that the area won’t need to be mowed in the future. I’m also planning two new beds outside of the vegetable garden for blueberry plants.
- Which brings me to number six! Now is a great time to plant dormant plants. Fruit trees and blueberry bushes are on my agenda but many other shrubs and trees can also be planted now.
What have you done in your garden to get ready for spring?
