10 Spring Gardening Tips to Prepare Your Garden for the Season
As we embrace the early whispers of spring, it’s the perfect time to start preparing our gardens. This month, we'll explore essential steps to awaken your garden from its winter slumber and set the stage for a flourishing season.
Assess and Clean Up
Begin by assessing your garden. Remove any debris, old plant material, and weeds that have accumulated over winter. If you planted any winter kill cover crops, now is the time to get those removed to prepare the soil for cool season crops. Cleanup is crucial for preventing pests and diseases.
2. Tool and Equipment Check
Ensure your gardening tools and equipment are in good working order. Sharpen blades and replace or repair any damaged tools, and clean and remove dirt or rust. Proper maintenance of garden tools not only makes gardening tasks easier and more effective but also prolongs the life of the tools.
3. Pruning and Maintenance
Prune perennials, shrubs, trees and overgrown branches as needed. Early spring is ideal for pruning many plants, but always check the specific requirements for each species.
It's important to prune correctly to avoid damaging the plants. For instance, pruning flowering shrubs after they bloom ensures they don't lose the upcoming season's flowers. Also, removing any diseased or pest-infested branches helps prevent the spread of problems.
Tools should be clean and sharp for clean cuts. Always research the specific pruning needs of each plant, as the timing and method can vary significantly. Proper pruning not only improves the appearance of plants but also promotes healthy growth and flowering.
4. Garden Layout
Before you start planting, take some time to thoughtfully plan the layout of your garden. Have you considered the dimensions of you garden beds an decided which plants will go there? How far apart do you need to space your rows? You'll want enough room for pathways to easily access your plants for weeding and harvesting. How much space do you need to give each vegetable before the next vegetable in its row? Don’t forget to think about factors like sun exposure, plant height, and the growth patterns of your chosen vegetables and herbs. For example, taller plants like tomatoes should be placed where they won’t cast shade on smaller, sun-loving plants like basil. Sketching a simple diagram of your garden on paper can be incredibly helpful. This map doesn’t have to be a work of art, but it should serve as a practical guide to ensure that every plant has its place and enough room to thrive. By taking the time to plan your garden layout, you're setting the stage for a more organized, efficient, and fruitful gardening season.
5. Soil Preparation
Healthy soil is the foundation of a productive garden. You may want to test your soil to determine its pH and nutrient levels. Depending on the results, you may need to amend your soil with compost, manure, or other organic matter to improve fertility and structure. As a general part of your annual routine, adding compost to the soil once or twice a year should be done to maintain and enhance soil health.
The University of Missouri Extension provides soil testing for those in the St. Louis area. Written instructions are listed on their website as well as an instructional video for how to take your soil samples.
There are fees that depend on how many soil samples you have and what you are testing for.
6. Add Compost/Mulch
Apply a layer of compost or fine wood chips to your garden beds will help with pH balance. This is not the same as regular mulch from the hardware store. Those pieces of wood are too chunky. Building soil with compost and wood chips helps retain moisture, suppress weeds, and gradually enriches the soil as it breaks down. Grass shavings can be used for soil cover, too. The greens are rich in nitrogen.
7. Starting Seeds
For plants that need a head start, begin sowing seeds indoors under grow lights. This gives them enough time to develop before transplanting outdoors after the last frost.
For warm season crops like peppers- it’s time to get them started indoors!
8. Planting
In St. Louis, hardiness region 7a (as of 2024), March is the time to plant cool season vegetables - root crops, greens, and brassicas such as carrots, beets, turnips, radishes, spinach, lettuce, collards, kale, chard, mustard greens, arugula, cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, kohlrabi, bok choy, potatoes, and peas.
Mid-March is the time to plant these cool season crops as either seeds or seedlings depending on what you have. Start seeds indoors for certain vegetables and flowers that have a longer growing season.
Using a low tunnel with row cover or cold frame over the crops will protect the crops from any low-to-freezing temps.
March is a pivotal month for planting bulb onions, as early planting is key. Ideally, you should plant onions in mid-March, but with season extension methods, even early March is possible. Onion bulbs start forming in response to increasing day lengths, so the earlier they are planted, the more time they have to grow before this trigger. This results in more energy accumulation and consequently larger bulbs. Delaying planting can lead to smaller onions, as the bulb formation is less influenced by factors like weather, watering, or general care and more by the increasing daylight hours of the season.
If you have annual flowers used for attracting pollinators and predator insects, now is the time to get those planted in the ground directly outside.
A good resource for Missouri is Grow Native! A two-page handout that lists native companion plants and pollinators can be found here.
9. Watering System
Check and prepare your watering system. Clean out rain barrels, check hoses for leaks, and set up a watering schedule that meets the needs of your plants.
Effective watering is a key aspect of gardening, especially for vegetables that require ample moisture. Vegetables like tomatoes, cucumbers, and zucchini are particularly thirsty and benefit from consistent, deep watering. This approach encourages deeper root growth, which is essential for healthy, productive plants. It's also important to water early in the day to reduce evaporation and prevent fungal diseases.
Implementing a drip irrigation system or using soaker hoses can provide efficient and even watering, ensuring that the water reaches the roots where it's most needed. Mulching around the plants helps retain soil moisture and reduces the frequency of watering. Remember, over-watering can be just as harmful as under-watering, so it's crucial to understand the specific water needs of each type of vegetable in your garden. Over-watering is where most people get watering wrong.
10. Enjoy the Process
As a reminder to everyone including myself, gardening is a journey, not a destination. Enjoy the process of planning, planting, and watching your garden grow.
As you embark on your gardening adventure this spring, keep these tips in mind to ensure a successful and enjoyable gardening season.
