Spring officially starts March 20, ushering in warmer weather and budding landscapes.
It’s time to get your garden ready.
Gary Streb, president-elect of James City County/Williamsburg Master Gardeners, and Susan Dippre, landscape supervisor at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, offered advice on spring gardening tasks.
Spring cleaning
Clean out and neaten flower beds, whether leaves, weeds, dead plants. Waiting could exacerbate problems.
“Leaves are great for mulching, but if you leave them wet, they’re just going to get moldy,” Streb said.
Even more, if you let weeds go to seed, Streb said, they could be there for years. Pulling up weeds now allows a greater chance of controlling them.
Dippre said to identify plants that didn’t make it through the winter and pull them out. That way, you have an idea of empty spaces to fill when it comes time to plant.
Prune with caution. “Check a pruning calendar to see when is the appropriate time to prune your plants,” Streb said.
For example, pruning azaleas now would rid them of their flowers, Dippre said. But Streb said now is a good time to prune roses, ornamental grasses and liriope.
Healthy soil, healthy plants
“Bottom line: the soil is the key to a healthy plant,” Streb said.
Streb recommended starting with a soil test, which reports the nutrients already in your soil. This helps determine what type of fertilizer to use, and how much.
“Fertilizer is nutrients for the plant, but you may be overdosing the plant on some of the nutrients if the plant doesn’t need it,” Streb said. Not to mention the potential of wasted money and increased run-off.
A soil sample box and instructions are available from the local Virginia Cooperative Extension office, 3127 Forge Road. Once the test returns, then you can begin creating healthy soil. Streb recommended either slow-release fertilizer or compost.
‘Compost, compost, compost’
Dippre said she dresses her garden with compost, instead of mulch. “Mulch can kind of take stuff out of the soil, but compost always improves the soil,” she said.
Streb said top-dress garden beds with about an inch of compost. Or, if creating a new bed, add up to six inches and till it in.
“Compost, compost, compost – that’s the answer to really healthy soil,” he said.
You can buy bagged compost at any garden store. And while it’s too late to make your own compost for this spring season, it’s never too late to start making compost. Simply layer organic matter in a pile – whether leaves, clippings, vegetable and fruit scraps, etc. Turn it over and add water periodically. By next spring, the compost will be ready to go.
“It’s energy saving, time saving, money saving,” Streb said. “You know what’s in it.”
Divide and conquer
Early spring is good for dividing perennials, especially if plants have grown into a large clump and died in the center. Dig the plant up, separate it and replant.
“Dividing perennials will create more plants. The plants that you have will be healthier, more productive,” Streb said. He said the coming weeks are perfect for dividing – but only for plants not yet blooming.
It’s time for new plants, too, whether annuals, perennials, trees, shrubs. But be conscious of where and how you plant. You may have the perfect place in mind, Streb said, but it needs to be the right place for the plant – a place where light and water conditions are met.
“Everything you need is on the label, so read the label,” Streb said.
Be patient
Still, be careful – Dippre cautioned against buying annuals and tender plants too early.
Streb said the area’s traditional last frost date is April 15. Determined by historical data, this is the point at which frosting is guaranteed not to happen. Though Williamsburg has started to warm, you never know what turn the weather might take.
Streb and Dippre said it’s best to plant annuals, and any tender plants, after the frost date.
“What I advise people on is to just be patient and not try to push things,” Dippre said. “They can go out and enjoy what’s already happening in the landscape.”
“Enjoy spring. Let spring have it’s time,” she said.
Bridges can be reached by phone at 757-345-2342.
Need help?
Registration is open for Landscape Love, a free consultation program by James City County/Williamsburg Master Gardeners. In an individualized session, a team of Master Gardeners visits your home to discuss a range of landscape problems, from plant selection, placement and care to reducing use of water and fertilizer.
Available at jccwmg.org., applications are accepted until April 15, with visits in late April and May. Spots are limited, decided on a first-come, first-serve basis. Must be a resident of James City County or City of Williamsburg to apply.
