The hot summer months will soon be upon us, so ready or not, it is time to be thinking about all those garden chores that need to be done.
The quiet winter and early spring months are great times to get those garden tools and lawn mower blades sharpened and disinfected. Many pests and diseases can overwinter so disinfecting your tools, and pots is a must. A 9 to 1 water/bleach solution (9 parts water to 1 part bleach) works very well for your pots. Vinegar, Pine Sol, or alcohol work better for your metal tools, stakes and tomato cages. Bleach will rust them. Storing them in a bucket of sand mixed with linseed or mineral oil will keep them clean and sharp throughout the season. This also is a great time to get your lawn mower and other motorized garden equipment tuned-up.
While autumn is the best time to get those old and new flower or vegetable beds prepped, it can still be done in time for spring planting, Adding 1” to 2” of fresh compost to your existing beds helps rejuvenate the soil from year to year. Think about using the No-Till method for new flower or veggie plots. By layering old newspaper, cardboard, and straw with aged manure, non-treated grass clippings and compost, you can create new beds without breaking your back. Instructions for the layering can be found online at research-based websites. Patricia Lanza’s “Lasagna Gardening”, research-based No Till Gardening articles or PDF’s, or Mel Bartholomew’s “Square Foot Gardening” books are also great resources. Straw Bale Gardening (Joel Karsten) is a great way to add more gardening space from year to year. Because you start with fresh bales every year, you don’t have to worry about rotating your garden. I find it especially great for tomatoes, producing a lot of fruit and allowing me to grow many more plants than I would normally be able to in my raised beds.
Once you get your beds prepped, it is time to soil-test your garden. Healthy Soil=Healthy Plants! Testing your soil will let you know exactly what amendments you need to add to your garden, if any, which will save you time, money, and a lot of frustration. The tests kits are available at Virginia Cooperative Extension offices (www.ext.vt.edu).
Mulching your veggie and flower beds help retain soil moisture, moderate soil temperatures and discourage weeds during those hot summer months. Mulching materials can include shredded hardwood, pine straw, and compost. Newspaper, minus the color inserts, straw, and compost work well for vegetable gardens. No more than 2 to 3 inches of mulch spread at least an inch from tree and shrub trunks. No volcanoes, please!
Did winter give your plants the old heave ho? The freeze/thaw cycles that commonly occur during winter months can sometimes cause your plants to come up out of the ground. This is called heaving. Just tuck them back down and they are generally good to go. By walking your garden and lawn areas you can catch these problems before they turn into disasters. Once it begins to warm up, pest and disease issues may rear their ugly heads. Handling them early will prevent problems down the road. Be sure to follow all directions on pesticide or herbicide products paying special attention to air and soil temperature requirements.
Take advantage of a mild day to do a bit of weeding. Annual weeds such as chickweed, poa anna, bittercrest, and henbit are familiar weeds that if let go, can take over your garden and lawn when it starts to get warmer. By weeding a little at a time you can prevent seed drop and the inevitable invasion in your garden beds. Not sure what is what? Check out the Virginia Tech Weed Identification https://weedid.cals.vt.edu.
Spring is not the most optimal time to sow grass as the roots do not have enough time to establish strong roots and absorb fertilizers completely before the heat of the summer. If you choose not wait until the fall, the best time for lawn care, check out VCE’s Spring and Summer Lawn Management Considerations for Cool Season Turfgrasses https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/430/430-532/430-532.html Spring is, however, a great time to manage annual weeds and crabgrass in the lawn. The timing of preemergent treatments is very important. Watch for the blooming of forsythia, daffodils, and dogwoods in your neighborhood as a signal to apply herbicides. Crabgrass will require another application in late spring. Just a reminder that if you are sowing grass seed you will not be able to use a preemergent. The herbicide can’t tell the difference between a weed seed and grass seed.
It is time to prune your SUMMER blooming plants back so they can look their best! Pruning schedules and instructions can be accessed from your local Virginia Cooperative Extension office or on the website (www.ext.vt.edu). Our exceptionally warm winter followed by periods of freezing temps and high winds have totally confused our plants. Prune out those areas of winter burn removing those dead or damaged branches. You are generally safe pruning most shrubs back 1/3. Be careful with evergreens as they don’t bounce back after a bad haircut! I would be remiss in not mentioning all the services offered by the Virginia Cooperative Extension. The Extension service is the outreach for our land grant universities, Virginia Tech and Virginia State. It provides research-based information, education, and tools you can use every day to improve your life. Horticultural questions about your garden can be answered at the Bedford County Master Gardener Help Desk (540) 586-7675, email bedfordmg@vt.edu or www.bedfordmastergardeners.org.
March 2021 By: Sue Becker, Bedford Extension Master Gardener Volunteer; BAMGA President
PHOTO SOURCE: University of Minnesota Extension.