Spring Gardening Tasks

There are minimally five basic tasks that every home gardener needs to perform in order to prepare their garden for Spring. For the sake of expediency, I am going to assume that you have already cleaned out the “trash from your beds; that would be the natural trash, such as spent annuals from last year, dead stalks from your perennials where they died back to the ground, leaves from shrubs and trees, and the unnatural trash, such as the candy wrappers left behind by kids celebrating Halloween and the trash left by teenagers celebrating anything! So, with no further ado, let us begin on our list of five.

Healthy, balanced soil is the most important, oft overlooked component, of any sensational looking bed of plants, pot of flowers, or lawn, for that matter.

A soil test:
Saves time
Saves effort
Saves dollars

It saves time, effort and dollars on plants that die or don’t thrive; saves time, effort and dollars on applying fertilizer or compost that you didn’t need; saves time, effort and dollars by applying the right fertilizer that you did need in the right amounts.

The price of a soil test kit is minimal; it is easily offset as expenditure by the cost of saving just a few plants that retail for $3.99 each, or by the joy of seeing your garden thrive at its best. The rapitest Soil Test Kit is available at Parkview for $19.95; each kit will test ten different areas or beds in your yard or garden for pH, Nitrogen, Phosphorous, and Potassium, or Potash.

Testing for pH You test for pH because it is a measurement of the amount of acidity or alkalinity in your soil. Ideally it is basic, or 6.5-7 for general planting. There are exceptions in planting that would require soil amending. For instance, Blueberries prefer a 5.0 pH; Hydrangeas require a 5.2-5.5 pH range for blue flowers, a 5.6-5.9 pH range for purple flowers, and a 6.0-6.2 pH range for pink flowers; the Rhododendron family (which includes Azaleas) prefers a 5.5 pH.

Testing for Nitrogen You test for Nitrogen, or N, because it is an essential amino acid and is vital for plant growth. Symptoms of nitrogen deficiency include a basic failure to thrive, unexplained wilting and the dying off of parts of the plant. Another visual clue that is a common side effect is the overall yellowing of the plant.

Testing for Phosphorous You test for Phosphorous, or P, because it is primarily responsible for root growth and flower and fruit development; it performs these functions by helping the plant convert other nutrients into usable “building blocks”. Symptoms of phosphorous deficiency are unusually small plants with little or no flowers (and therefore little or no fruit), and either bright green or purplish coloration.

Testing for Potassium You test for Potassium, or K, because it is important for enzyme activation, stomatal activity (transpiration), photosynthesis, transportation of sugars, water and nutrient transportation, protein synthesis and starch synthesis. Symptoms of potassium deficiency can include discoloration along the outer edge of the leaves, scorching, a series of small white or yellowish dots, curling, crinkling, or leathery edged leaves, stunted growth, smaller leaves and thinner stems.

Having used a soil test and learned what your soil is lacking or overabundant in, it behooves you to condition the soil, adding the necessary amendments to make it prime for your needs. The very best thing you can do for the soil is to amend it over the course of time, using the most naturally occurring of choices, which requires some patience, but the benefits are excellent.

Healthy Soil...so how do you "make" it?
Healthy soil has three main characteristics…good texture (not sandy, not clayey, but loamy), a basic pH, which I already discussed, and lots and lots of organic matter. As the organic matter breaks down, it becomes humus. Humus increases aeration, aids in both absorption and drainage of moisture, and provides nutrients to your plants.

I prefer to use cotton burr compost to amend the soil in garden beds, to top dress my lawn, for just about anything! When you introduce more compost into your soil, you increase the organic matter in the soil; more organic matter, more humus. How much you add depends on the results of your soil test. Apply organic matter that will bring your soil into balance. Think of it this way; you don’t eat only salad without any dressing, with no protein and no fat, do you? Or only eat Twinkies and drink chocolate milk, which is a fat and sugar laden diet? Or eat only steak for breakfast, lunch and dinner, which is a protein-rich diet? Just as it is recommended for humans to have a well-balanced diet, it is essential for your soil to be well-balanced.

For those of you who are impatient, who have become instant gratification folks, we know that you rely on applying fertilizers to the soil, but you need to be aware that if you use inorganic fertilizers because they are cheaper up front, easier to apply and provide a quick fix, you are doing nothing to alleviate the problem with the soil, and are only feeding the plants. Overapplication can increase the salt content of the soil to the point where it actually damages the plants. In an article by Marie Iannotti, she compared it to a human trying to survive on vitamin supplements and no substantial food! Eventually, however, the cost of continued application will blow past the cost of amending your soil, and your time spent applying will outstrip the time you would have invested in bed amendment. So, like everything else in life, applying fertilizer should be done in moderation, and whenever possible, try to use organic fertilizers.

It is the purity of ingredients and the slowness of organic fertilizers that make them so appealing. The time release factor, slow and gradual, keeps the plants from being burned, keeps them happy and on an even keel. The organics are easier on the environment, pets and people, as well.

You might be asking why I am so adamant about using cotton burr compost. Cotton burr compost is readily available, pre-bagged and manageable in a 2 cubic foot bag. The following is an excerpt from an article found in researching cotton burr compost.

“In the world of composting, experts worldwide agree that The Soil Food Web is the world’s leading authority in the field of compost research, testing, and grading of compost. Founded by noted researcher Dr. Elaine Ingham, the Soil Food Web has a network of laboratories around the world and is a leading advocate of sustainable agriculture.

Only a few consultants are endorsed by and associated with the Soil Food web, one of which is Ms. Jennifer Appel. When interviewed about the efficacy of cotton burr compost, Ms. Appel told me that, “cotton burr compost is head and shoulders above any other compost.” Yes, that’s a big claim, so my follow-up question dealt with her reasoning for this position. Ms. Appel states that “cotton is a very heavy feeder, absorbing vast amounts of nutrients from the soil as it grows and the bulk of the nutrients are located in the burr left over from the ginning process.”” By organic-gardening-for-life.com

Then there is this portion of an article by the Back to Nature company:

“The fleshy cotton burr is important because it is the primary repository of nutrients. Cotton burrs contain a significant amount of NPK (nitrogen, phosphate, potassium), the three macronutrients required by plants, as well as numerous micronutrients.

Cotton burrs have a carbon-nitrogen (C/N) ratio of 22:1, eliminating the nitrogen tie-up caused by using wood and wood-based soil amendments.

When properly composted, cotton burrs are a natural fertilizer with a protein content of approximately 35%. This makes cotton burrs an excellent food source for the beneficial soil organisms that help make nutrients available to plants, aerate the soil, and help to combat harmful organisms and diseases. The outstanding ability of COTTON BURR COMPOST to loosen tight, clay soils has long been common knowledge in the Southern United States. COTTON BURR COMPOST also has excellent moisture retention characteristics and unlike peat moss, accepts and retains water easily. REGULAR COTTON BURR COMPOST helps to neutralize soil pH.”

Now that you are well and thoroughly convinced to use cotton burr compost, you need to know how much to add. In clay soils, blend one-third compost to two-thirds of your own soil. In sandier soils, you can use upwards to a half and half mixture of compost to soil. In new beds, till compost in to a depth of at least 6”, then water thoroughly. As a top dressing in existing beds, apply one inch to the surface of the soil, lightly work it in by raking, if at all possible.

You divide perennials for three main reasons:
To increase the number of plants.
To control the size of the plants.
To help rejuvenate them.

Some indicators that your perennials are in need of rejuvenation are clumps that will start to die out in the middle, assuming a doughnut-like shape (some say that it looks like a rabbit made a nest in the center), decreased bloom production, stunted growth and yellowing leaves. The roots of the plant are choking themselves, and the soil nutrients are being depleted. Digging up, dividing, reenergizing the soil with compost and moving the divisions will perk up that original planting area.

A commonly asked question regarding perennials follows: Which perennials are best divided in Spring, and which should wait until Fall?

The answer is that generally speaking, perennials that flower between Early Spring and Mid-June are best divided in Early Fall. Perennials that flower after Mid-June are best divided in the Spring.

(The reason that I have underlined generally speaking is that not all perennials like to be divided; if you are have specific questions about your perennials, please do not hesitate to contact Parkview Gardens for answers.)

Some examples of perennials best divided in Spring: Asters, Astilbe, Bearded Iris, Beebalm, Bellflower, Black-eyed Susan (spring or fall for this one), Daylily (spring, summer or fall, daylilies are not fussy, but the best time is after the bloom is finished), Hosta (early spring or early fall), Ornamental grasses (spring for most, many grasses do not tolerate fall division), Purple coneflower (spring or fall), Tall Sedum like ‘Autumn Joy’, Tickseed , also known as Coreopsis (spring or fall), Wormwoods , also known as Artemisia, Yarrow (spring or fall).

Pruning Shrubs
Dead limbs can occur on shrubs and trees after a winter such as the one we are leaving behind us. It is always a good time to prune away something that is already dead. Live limbs will be green when you do a viability check, brown will signal death. However, the time for pruning limbs that are healthy from your flowering shrubs is determined by your desire to have blooms on that shrub this year!

Shrubs that bloom in Spring have their buds already set and in place; they bloom on “old wood”, last year’s growth. If you prune them now, you will lose most, if not all of, the flowers for this year.

Shrubs that bloom later in the year bloom on “new wood”, wood that will form this year; they are best pruned in Late Winter or Early Spring.

Some examples of Spring bloomers: Forsythia, Lilacs, Korean Spice Viburnum

Some examples of Later bloomers: Butterfly Bush, Rose of Sharon, Lavender, Bluebeard, Beautyberry

Overseeding Lawns with Cool-Season Grasses
Overseeding over your existing grass takes some preparation, in order for the tiny seeds to actually reach the soil. Mow the existing grass much shorter than the recommended height of 3-3.5”; 1.5-2” is best. Bag or rake up the clippings to have a clear “landing strip” for the seeds. Core aerating the lawn also helps; you can rent an aerator from a local rental center. Adding a thin layer of compost, ¼” in depth, and raking it in gives a fertile “bed” for the seeds to lay in.
After spreading the grass seed at the recommended rate for the variety that you have purchased for your lawn, water in properly. This translates into a fine spray; anything more, and you will be washing the grass seed into the neighbor’s yard. The soil should be kept evenly moist. This may mean several waterings per day, depending on the weather, for several weeks.
After the seeds have germinated and you begin to see the tiny grass blades sprout, you will still need to water a couple of times per day, for best results.
The best time for overseeding lawns that have cool-season grasses is in September; the second-best time for overseeding is in March or April.

(Please don’t overlook the Fall-Blooming Perennials; they aren’t blooming in the Spring, and they will bring beauty in the Fall when so many other plants are done for the year!)
After all this preparation, it is time finally to pick your new plants and put them in their new homes. Be sure to read the tags or ask one of us if your choices are indeed zoned as perennials in our area; the zones are usually, but not always printed on the tags, and the print is tiny.

As a word to the Gardenwise Worker: Remember the old adage in Real Estate and Business: Location, Location, Location…I’ve got a garden version of that, repeated three times to help reinforce it in your memory… Compaction, Compaction, Compaction!!!
I just keep on learning stuff!! We as an industry understand more and more about the soil food web. “The more we disrupt the soil, the more we disrupt the ecosystem in our soil. That ecosystem is what makes healthy, crumbly, nutrient-rich soil possible. Till and dig as little as possible. Add organic matter to the top inch or two of soil, or just lay it right on top of your garden and let the earthworms work it for you”. (Colleen Vanderlinden, Website)

Once you have cleaned, prepared, divided, pruned and planted in your garden, apply mulch. Let’s be specific, this is wood mulch, not gravel or rock mulch. I cannot emphasize enough how much I firmly believe in the benefits of wood mulch. Wood mulch suppresses weed growth, thereby making your weeding life easier. Wood mulch helps retain the moisture that the plants receive. Wood mulch is organic matter in the process of becoming humus…remember, that is the really beneficial stuff!

There are those amongst you who are just as adamant about not using wood mulch for fear of attracting termites to your home. I did extensive research in order to set my own mind at ease, as I use wood mulch in all of my garden beds. What I found confirms what all my professors at college verbalized: wood mulch is preferable, as long as it is applied properly. In fact, some studies have proven that using rock or gravel as mulch puts your home at more risk for termites than using the wood mulch!

The recommended application for Mulch in Spring in our Colder Winter Area:

Apply 2-2.5 inches of mulch in the Spring after the soil has warmed and begun to dry. Depending on soil texture, temperature and other weather conditions, this is usually Mid to Late Spring.
Mulching too early can result in soil taking too long to dry out. This delays root growth, which depends on sufficient aeration (oxygen content in the soil) and a reasonably warm soil temperature. In moist or cool climates, mulching should be delayed until late May or June. Mulch after it rains, when the ground is moist but not waterlogged. Cultivate around plants first, loosening the soil and removing the weeds. Apply mulch after seeds are established, otherwise you risk covering the seeds. Keep an area six inches around seedlings free of mulch. Use your shovel or garden fork to put the mulch where you want it, and finish by using a garden rake to spread the mulch in an even manner.

So, to recap, the five things to do to prepare your garden for spring are:
1. Test your soil.
2. Amend your soil for fabulous food for fabulous flowers (and other plants).
3. Divide, prune, overseed.
4. Plant for Spring-through-Fall blooms.
5. Mulch, mulch, mulch.

Hopefully, you have learned something new that will assist you in your gardening. If you have any questions, we are all available to be of assistance.
Thanks for taking the time to read through this article; now go out and make your garden a bloomin’ Parkview Place!!