April 1 Garden Newsletter

Dear Garden Friends,

Welcome, Spring! Has anyone else noticed how everything is greening up and becoming beautiful lately? I love this time of year so much that I always thought if I had a daughter, I would name her Spring. Well, I have several, and none of them named Spring. Perhaps someday!


April Checklist:
1. SEARCH AND DESTROY. Inspect your yard for weeds, this probably won’t take a magnifying glass if your yard looks anything like mine right now. Spray ‘em, pick ‘em, stomp ‘em, kill ‘em! Make sure you get the roots! And don’t let them stay in your yard to multiply from seed or layering. Bag ‘em and trash ‘em.
2. How would you look if you lived on water alone? Both you and your plants look better when fed properly. Malnutrition happens to green things, too. This, the green growing season, is the best time to feed your plants. Whether you are the Miracle-Gro type or the mulch and manure type, this is a good time to let your plants feast.
3. Grow your watermelon and eat it, too. This is the last call to get your fresh summer salads and salsas planted. It’s a great time to put out squash (especially zucchini), cantaloupe, watermelon, eggplant, and peppers.
4. Time for a trim. Keep your trees trimmed up now while they get their growth spurt to help keep them structurally strong come the Monsoon Winds. Keeping shrubs trimmed this time of year will lower their flowering capability, but keep their growth in the shape and manageability you might want. I prefer flowers, personally, but I don’t blame you people with green yoga ball shapes in your yard, either. It’s your garden; grow with it what and how you will!
5. Journal it! Keep track of your work and get all the glory. Even if all you do is scratch “pulled weeds” onto little square on the calendar, you’ll be glad you did. If you find come summer that “pulled weeds” showed up 8 times in two months, then next year it will be your reminder to do a little more weed prevention. It’s especially helpful when planting seeds and plantlets so that you can measure their growth or recall what was planted when you don’t recognize the seedlings coming up.
6. Location, location, location. Have houseplants? This is their biggest growing season. It is also the time of year that windows begin to heat up in the desert. Time to turn your plants and move them back from the window a little way so they don’t get burned. Remember, most common houseplants are shade-loving tropical plants in their natural habitat.

That’s it! Short is sweet. You’ll find below my standard itemized-by-category garden hints. Get out and garden while the weather is great!

Hands dirty,
Trish