Gardening Tips
Need help in the garden? You've come to the right place! Below you'll find helpful reminders of what you should be doing with your plants this month. Be sure to visit our Favorite Garden Links page for great websites providing gardening tips and troubleshooting as well as recommended reading.

April

•Prep Work - As soon as the snow is clear and the ground solid enough to walk on, get to work clearing your beds of last year's dead foliage. Raking now will save new growth from being torn once it does start to emerge. Organic fertilizers, such as compost or compost tea, can be applied to your perennials as soon as the ground can be worked. Chemical and time-release fertilizers, such as Miracle Gro and Osmocote, should be applied right before growth begins.

•Bulbs! - Could it be?!? Yes, green growth! Spring-flowering bulbs can be fertilized now with a diluted, preferably organic, fertilizer in your watering can. Now is also a good time to fertilize summer-flowering bulbs. Bulb-tone works great and spreads easily, but be sure to use Holly-tone for all of your lilies. Stop in to the shop for a supply of each!

•Check the Soil - Before applying any amendments, such as lime, to your soil we recommend taking samples of your dirt and sending them to the UNH Cooperative Extension for a complete analysis. You will receive instructions on how to adjust your soil to create optimum growing conditions. It is especially important to send samples from problem areas in your garden. Also, vegetable gardens produce so many different crops they are likely to need adjustment regularly and should have, at minimum, a pH test completed each year. If possible, we would also recommend sending in a sample of soil from the most problem-free area of your garden to act as an example of what is needed elsewhere. Click here to learn more about soil tests offered by the Extension.

•Almost Time! Finally you can start thinking about planting again! Hardy annuals, perennials and cold-crop seeds should not be planted outside until the soil is dry enough to be workable. A ball of soil packed in your hand should crumble easily before you plant. Soil that is still too wet will stick together, holding its shape. Seeds can be started indoors this month according to the directions on each package. Many people start transplanting annuals and vegetable crops outdoors mid-way through May, while others wait until the end of May to be safe. Stop in to the shop for your seed supply, count back from your desired transplanting date and have fun!

•Pruning - Hollies will be rejuvenated by a heavy pruning in early spring. Prune summer flowering shrubs that flower on new wood now as well. Butterfly bush can be cut back to 6-12 inches from the ground to encourage new growth. Prune raspberries and blueberries, if needed, before growth begins. Prune roses before or just as the buds swell. For some good photo tutorials on pruning your rose bushes, visit WeekendGardener.net or HGTV.com. For a quick reference for the hows and whens of pruning many common trees and shrubs, visit this site. Always check proper pruning times before working on a new variety to be sure you won't be cutting off all of this or next year's flowers.