Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Getting Ready for Spring

I love spring!  I get so antsy as the weather turns a bit warmer and the daffodils start to peak up through the ground.  I usually can't wait to dig around in the yard and the flower beds.  And, according tomost gardening experts, now is the time to get out there!  A common mistake many people make is waiting until the weather turns much warmer and flowers are beginning to bloom to pay attention to their yards.  Unfortunately, by then, it is too late to really prepare for your yard to show at its best.  At the end of February and early March, I begin the season by doing the following task list before I do anything else:

I'm in Zone 7, so this may not fit everyone's March to-do-list.  Those of you a little further north will want to wait a month or so...

  • Remove all the leaves, twigs and fallen branches that have accumulated in the yard over the winter months.  Even though I removed all the leaves in the fall, there will still be some in the spring that have blown in over the winter.
  • Trim up the foliage on the summer blooming perennials that are above the ground.  I normally trim up my evergreen herbs like rosemary, etc. during this time.  I also prune most of my roses in March.  Keep in mind that it is too late to prune your spring blooming perennials and shrubs (forsythia, quince, etc.)  - prune these later after the blooms have gone.
  • Dig out all the weeds that have started to spring up in the flower beds.  As hard as it is to believe that those suckers can grow in February...they do.  Weeding now will reduce your job in this regard later in the year!
  • Cut back vines and ivy that has grown out of its territory.
  • Cut back ornamental grasses, including liriope, and the dead stems of perennials (I always leave these during the winter for the birds and other wildlife) to a few inches high.
  • Loosen the old mulch with a cultivator (or in my case, a gloved hand) acorns and other dried plant matter that has accumulated around my shrubs and perennials.  Air needs to be able to better penetrate those roots!
  • Reseed and fertilize the lawn.
  • Fertilize my spring bulbs.
Here are some photos of our yard in spring and summer.  We are still in the planning and planting phases of our landscaping, and there is so much more to do, but we are quite proud of what we have accomplished.






















Happy Gardening!

2 comments:

Marilyn said...

Beautiful photo's.. Lovely garden;)) .. Great blog you have here.. I am stopping in via Linky followers hop to follow ya.. Hope you can stop in and follow back sometime.. I'm Marilyn via http://www.theartsygirlconnection.com ... wishing ya a great evening.. ;))

Virginia Country House said...

Such gorgeous flowers!