Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Garden prep and pruning out damage
If you’ve already been out in the yard, and let’s face it after some of that warmth we had, who wasn’t???
Still it’s a great time for garden tool prep. This is definitely a perennial topic! I’ve been notorious for neglecting my tools but I’m making a concerted effort. You spend money for quality tools, they’re the backbone of our gardens… so spending some time giving them a good “going over” makes sense!
Take some steel wool to those trowels, a file to your pruners and examine tools for any repair or, perhaps replacement!
Speaking of pruners, you can prune out dead or damaged branches on any of your trees or shrubs, always using caution.
Panicle and Smooth hydrangeas, as I talked about last week, can be pruned now if their buds aren’t open at all.
You can add organic matter to your garden beds right now!
Actually there’s never a bad time to add organic matter but with nothing planted, you can toss it all willy nilly and LIGHTLY rake it out.
Continue to LIGHTLY rake out soggy piles of leaves that are matted down. I’ve already played pick up sticks in the yard!
Remove winter mulch. If you added it for strawberries, tender perennials or extra protection for newly planted shrubs, it’s time to lift it out.
We aren’t likely to experience any hard frosts below 28 degrees. But it doesn’t hurt to keep the mulch nearby, just in case! Row covers are another way to protect your plants. I’ve used these for bug protection too.
