April
Spring is officially here and combined with the relaxation of lock down, vaccines being rolled out left, right and center and the garden coming back to life hope is in the air!
It's been a hard few months, January and February are never the easiest months in a normal year let alone when locked down, but we've made it. With dreams of a foreign holiday slipping further away our thoughts are focused on a summer in the UK and on our own gardens. Gardening has reemerged as a national hobby over the past year and I think we've all realised how important our gardens are to our mental and physical well being. With a surge in demand for plants and limited availability it is increasingly difficult to source not only the rarer plant varieties but the more common ones as well. If you're looking for plants do try independentplantnurseriesguide.uk for plant nurseries local to you or try sowing from seed which currently seem to have better availability.
April is one of my favourite months in the garden. With the summer laid out before us, the tulips are beginning to flower, blossom adorns the trees and the evenings are lighter. It is prime seed sowing time so here are some ideas of what you could be doing this month:
But watch out, there is still a very real risk of frost so keep tender plants under cover and keep an eye on the forecast!
What to do in the garden this month:
Sow/Plant:
Sow hardy annuals and perennials under cover and direct.
Sow tomatoes, cucumbers and aubergines in a propagator.
Sow courgettes, chard, leeks, peas, beetroot, lettuce, kale, sprouts, beans, squash under cover.
Sow carrots, spinach, chard, peas, beetroot, radish direct.
Pot up dahlia tubers.
Plant out sweet peas.
Plant out potatoes.
Prick out and pot on seedlings.
Prepare beds and borders - weed!
Lift and divide snowdrops.
Harvest/pick:
Tulips, hyacinths, daffodils, forsythia, irises, leeks, kale, cabbage, chard, spinach.
Secature/lopper jobs:
Prune cornus (dogwoods) and pot up the cuttings.
Prune winter flowering jasmine and forsythia after flowering.
Cut back old perennials growth.
Deadhead hydrangeas.
Stake/support:
Start staking tall perennials before they get
too tall!
Make a sweet pea wigwam or supports for the beans.
Lawns and ponds:
Re edge, repair lawns and sow grass seed.
Mow when the grass starts growing but
not too short!
Gardening adds years to your life and life to your years. – Unknown