With the Spring Equinox just past, Spring is now here! And with it comes the busiest time of the gardening season. After spending less time in the great outdoors over winter, now is the time of year when most people start wanting to spend time in their gardens and therefore want their gardens clean and looking in tip top shape to enjoy as the weather gets nicer. To bring gardens back to their best, we will be spending April focusing on the following tasks in our clients' gardens:
1. Kill Moss and Lawn Weeds: The next few months is prime time for Annual/Semi-annual lawn maintenance tasks. The first key lawn care task to tackle is to kill moss and lawn weeds by applying relevant tonics and/or weed/moss killer(s) to lawn.
2. Scarify & Aerate Lawns: Once the moss and weed killer have had some time to work, we will scarify our lawns to remove thatch and dead moss/weeds. Then we aerate the lawns to relieve compaction and improve circulation. This stage of the process results in the lawns looking a little worse for wear initially, but it's only temporary and results in long-term improvement of the health of the lawn. It's a bit like going to the gym: You might be a bit sore for a few days after, but it builds muscle and an increase in strength and stamina long-term.
3. Overseed and Repair Lawns: Now is a great time of year to sow new grass seed and perform patch repairs on lawns. This is especially true after scarifying and aerating lawns. We have a few tricks up our sleeve that help to better integrate new seed/turf and lawn repairs.
4. Plant Evergreen Shrubs and Trees: April is a good time of year to plant container-grown trees and shrubs as there is less chance of them being damaged by the cold, stormy winds that winter can sometimes bring.
5. Install Wires and Supports for climbers: Now is the time to install wires and hard support frames for climbers before foliage starts to make access more difficult.
6. Tie in Shoots of new Climbers: Now is a good time of year to tie in twiners like clematis. Climbing rose shoots should now be tied as close to horizontal as possible to encourage more flowering on the side-shoots, and not just at the tips.
7. Prune early-flowering shrubs: Spring-flowering shrubs, like Forsythia, should be pruned after flowering. They flower on wood grown the previous summer so cut back to 2-3 buds from base now and let next year's buds start to grow.
8. Deadhead Spring bulbs: Daffodils and other spring bulbs will be finishing their displays this month. Once they have bloomed they will benefit from taking the spent flower off. But leave the stalk intact for another 6-8 weeks, as the plants use the stalks for energy to build next year's bulbs.
9. Tidy borders: With most garden borders having been left to their own for a few months, now is the time to tidy the borders by pulling out weed seedlings, lightly forking over the soil, and moving plants that have outgrown their space. Put in plant supports now before plants need them. Plants can grow around and through them, which support plants better. It also means you don't have to tread over border plants later in the year.
10. Mulch: It's never too late to mulch! As we have mentioned in previous blogs, mulching is the single best thing you can do to help improve both the look and the health of a garden. It's a big and smelly job though, so contact us and we can do it for you!
11. Jet-Spray and disinfect patios and garden furniture. Who wants to sit outside on their garden furniture wondering whether birds/animals/insects may have left something unsavory behind over the winter? We jet spray and disinfect patios, roof terraces and garden furniture so they not only look good but are clean too.
12. Trim grey-leaved shrubs, like Lavender, to keep them bushy. In addition to pruning in September, shrubs like Lavender should be pruned to shape in April to prevent them from getting too leggy.
13. Lower mower height and feed: By the end of April, grass in London should be growing faster and we can lower mower height to summer height length. We also give lawns a light feed to help support growth.
14. Install and repair water irrigation systems: After having been turned off for most of the winter, now is a good time of year to flush irrigation systems and inspect/repair any blockages or leaks. After last summer's heat wave, we are finding that most gardens (and their homeowners!) not only benefit from these systems but nowadays with increasingly hot temperatures garden plants almost require the kind of regular watering that automatic irrigation systems provide or else many plants die off.
15. Plant-up hanging baskets: By the end of April, we will start planting up hanging baskets for our clients, making sure to include water retaining granules and leave a concave area in the middle that allows for easier watering.
If you need help with these, or any other garden job, contact us and we can help you.