Jumping into Spring

As we jump into April, we have been experiencing some fantastic spring weather, but remember, we are in Wyoming.  And even as we experience some of the most absolutely beautiful spring weather we have had in recent years, watch your calendars and remember that the average last frost date for our area is around May 20.

And before we get too far ahead of ourselves in planting our gardens, there are a few things you should do prior to planting. Remember that it all starts with your soil. Your garden soil needs to be able to offer the best nutrients to the plants you are growing. Whether you grow in raised boxes or in the ground, nutrients get depleted throughout the season as the growing plants uptake nutrients and excessive watering leech nutrients from the soil.

One of the best ways to improve the quality of the soil is to add organic matter to your garden. Organic matter improves the soil’s capacity to hold moisture and nutrients, allowing for better absorption by the roots of the plants. The easiest and most economical way to add organic matter to your garden is by adding barnyard manures. However, it is best to add aged manures; be careful of fresh or hot manures. Fresh manure can cause damage to your newly planted vegetables. Compost from last year is also an excellent source of organic material to add to your garden to improve the health of your soil. If you remember to feed your garden soil, your soil will naturally feed your plants.

Even though we are about a month away from being able to safely plant tomatoes outside in our gardens, there are many vegetables that can be planted with the occasional frost night. You can plant your potato and onion sets now. My favorite potatoes to grow in my garden are Purple Viking and Huckleberry Gold. Don’t forget that you can also plant radish, beets and Swiss Chard seeds now, even with it still freezing at night. However, it is too early to plant bean, corn, cucumber and melon seeds.

You will soon be able to plant vegetable transplants like cabbage and broccoli; they can take cooler temperatures with ease. However, if you set your tomatoes, peppers and eggplants out early, make sure that you protect them with Wall of Waters or other plant protectors; they will not survive a freeze. Plant these tender vegetables with caution, or you just might be replanting them again.

Let’s step away from the vegetable garden and out into the yard. Spring is a great time to prune your trees. Fruit and ornamental trees can be pruned in the spring. Take the necessary steps to correctly prune your trees. Pruning incorrectly can take several years for your trees to recover. However, do not prune maples or birch trees in the spring. They will continue to bleed for several weeks. Also don’t prune your lilac bushes until after they bloom. If you do, you won’t have any blooms this spring.

Hopefully, you covered your roses last fall to protect them throughout the winter. Fortunately, we didn’t have much of a normal winter this year. However, with the lack of snow cover, the howling winds we have been experiencing recently have taken their toll on shrubs and especially uncovered roses by causing their stems to lose moisture and dry out. Sometimes this type of dehydration can take roses and other shrubs beyond the brink of return. I have seen a lot of roses die in the months of February and March because of wind.

By mid-to-late April, it is time to uncover the roses.  As you uncover the roses, take the time to prune back any dead, broken or diseased stems. Pruning will help stimulate new growth on your rose bushes. Give your freshly uncovered rose bushes a good deep drink of water and apply the first application of fertilizer. It’s been a long winter. A bit of rose trivia, the Peace rose was first introduced to the world on April 29, 1945. Lovell’s own Dr. W.W. Horsley was on hand to help christen this now world-famous rose.

Your lawn is starting to wake up from its winter dormancy. By late April it is time to apply the first application of fertilizer. Your lawn needs a high nitrogen-based fertilizer. Nitrogen is the first number in the three numbers on the fertilizer bag. You should apply a lawn fertilizer that has the first number in the range of 28-35. This will provide an adequate source of nitrogen for a healthy lawn. Make sure that you water the fertilizer in. If you have an exposed water pump, take appropriate measures to protect your pump at night while it is still freezing.

As your lawn is greening up, so are the weeds. There are some options to consider when dealing with your weeds. The most common weed would be the dandelion. Dandelions offer a very important first food source for honeybees. However, if yellow dandelion flowers are left to turn white and go to seed, they later become an obnoxious weed to contend with. The most common weed killer is 2,4-D and can be found in both granular and liquid forms. I prefer the liquid forms, whereas I can control where I am spraying the weed killer to kill weeds which are not all over my lawn. However, granular forms found in Weed and Feeds spreads chemical all throughout your yard. Yes, you are fertilizing your lawn, but you are also putting down chemicals everywhere. Choose wisely when killing weeds.

It always seems that there is more to do in my yard and garden than I have time to do it. So, remember, when you are jumping into things to do in your yard, stay focused on those which need to be done first. It is so easy to get distracted.

Successful Gardens is now open for the season. April hours are Monday to Friday 9 to 5 and Saturday 9 to 1, closed Sundays. Call 307-272-7270 or go to www.successfulgardens.com.