There is a beauty to the spring garden that cannot be understated. The hints of late winter and early spring have now come to fruition with an abundance of colourful flowers, vivid green festooning trees and shrubs alike. There’s an explosion of growth unlike any other time of the year and that means it needs to be supported with a good watering and feeding regime.
Think of it like this – everything in the garden could use a good feed right now as we head towards summer because now is when the growing is at its peak. Lawns in particular will need a good boost to go with the regular mowing that’s needed right through until late autumn. If you throw down some fertiliser, try and go for a feed that adds to the soil health, introducing microbes and other beneficial elements to create a solid base for healthy long-term growth. The addition of some organic material, compost, leaf mould and various animal manures is highly recommended as well at this time of the season.
All that work and added goodness is for nought, however, if your garden becomes too dry and is unable to retain any moisture. Regular watering, along with a good thick layer of mulch to retain all that wetness in the soil, be it rainfall or via the hose, is a must for any growing garden. If you find it difficult to find the time for regular watering, perhaps consider an irrigation system set on a timer. This can take all the effort out of watering, large gardens especially, and when the summer comes round, it’ll be well worth the investment. Some irrigation systems these days even have a rain sensor that halts an impending watering if it has already rained sufficiently.
Now, after a feed and a watering, the next step invariably is to keep all that goodness in the soil with a good thick layer of mulch. Regardless of what type you choose, make sure you put down a decent amount but remember to thin it down to almost nothing around the trunks of your trees and shrubs to prevent collar rot.
Pruning can also be done on anything with spent flowers and some regular cutting of all your hedges is a must to keep them looking sharp. Any leggy extra growth can be cut back on shrubs to keep them in shape and with the recent strong winds, any broken limbs on trees should be tidied up to prevent an entry point for pests and disease.
So, plenty of growth this time of the year but also plenty to do in the garden. Luckily, it’s been such nice weather lately with just a taste of the summer heat to keep it front of mind for what is to come. Enjoy!
October jobs to do now:
- Repot container plants
- Test and service irrigation systems
- Mulch thickly between plants
- Keep watch for warm weather pests
