It’s getting close to the time when we need to get out in the garden and tidy up for spring. This is the season where everything returns to life, where green shoots appear in place of the brown, and when we can start looking ahead to the summer and a beautiful display of blooms that are always pleasing to the eye.
Whether you are looking at growing a vegetable patch this year or keeping up with fruit canes, the time is ripe to start clearing away the winter debris that has accumulated over the last few months. Depending on your yard and the area it covers, there may be quite a lot to do, so you need to start planning.
Our best advice is to start with simple jobs such as clearing up leaves and making things tidier and more accessible, but there are also further things you should be doing at this time of year. Let’s have a look at some of the essential spring garden jobs that you should be tackling and how to go about them.
Garden Jobs for Spring
As mentioned above, it is probably best to start by getting rid of fallen leaves and other debris that comes about during the winter months. This is great preparation for the seasons to come. Let’s make a list of the essential jobs for spring that come after the clear up:
- Tidy the greenhouse ready for planting new seeds and seedlings. Now is also a good time to order this year’s stock of your intended plants and start making space for them in your greenhouse.
- Dead head roses and other flowers left from last season, and make sure all are trimmed down to a sensible height.
- Plant fruit canes now for the best growth in the coming season.
- Start your seeds right away after the last frost has been and gone.
Now, as our title suggests, there is one job that we want to look at carefully, and that’s trimming and pruning hard to reach hedges, shrubs and bushes. We’ve decided to give this subject its own short section as it is something that needs to be done with great care and attention.
The Art of Hedge Trimming
Hedges will need attention in the spring as they will have been left unattended during the winter. This leaves them looking untidy and unkempt, with uneven growth that needs to be checked and cut back. The problem with hedges is that they can be surprisingly tall or wide, and some are difficult to reach due to their location, as safety is always of paramount importance when gardening. We recommend the use of pole hedge trimmers to reach the hedges and cut them neatly and efficiently.
What are pole hedge trimmers? Put simply, this sort of hedge trimmer is one of the most useful tools you will buy if you have hedges, shrubs and bushes that need to be kept in order. The device is a long pole with trimming blades attached that can be operated from the handle, and they enable you to reach long distances that you may not be able to get to with conventional shears.
If you are looking at upgrading or replacing your tool kit for the garden, we recommend you check these out as you’ll find they make the job a lot easier. They also do away with the need for step ladders when trimming tall hedges, which can be dangerous in some situations and should never be used when on your own. So, that’s hedge trimming covered; let’s now look at what else you can do to make your garden the one everyone envies this season.
Preparing for Summer
Now that you have your greenhouse tidied – or your shed if that’s your place – and you’ve trimmed your hedges and tidied up, it’s time to get on with those other spring garden jobs that need to be done in the next couple of weeks. The weather can change quickly and dramatically at this time of year, and now that the frosts have largely passed, you’re ready to prepare for growth.
You could start mulching your vegetable patch and make sure your roses are nicely fertilised, and we recommend now as the time to start planting begonia corms as they will appreciate the warming soli and start to grow in just a short time. If you have a lawn, remember that it will begin growing quickly now the weather is improving, so you may want to wait until it’s a touch drier and then cut it for the first time of the year.
Whatever you start to do in the garden, enjoy it, and savour the wonderful spring air that is coming your way while you make things ready.
