Tips for the Spring

As we are experiencing typical March weather, days of sunshine intertwine with gusty cold wind and rain (right now its snowing outside!), there are a few garden chores that cannot and should not wait.

Pruning: Whene the leaf buds start to swell, it's time to prune roses. Remove dead and damaged canes, making sure to give your roses an open center for better air circulation.

Flowering shrubs: Here is a very simple rule of thumb to follow - Spring flowereing ones are pruned once a year right after they bloom. Fall blooming shrubs can be pruned now or right after they bloom.

Grapes, berries and fruit trees should be pruned by now. If you didn't - do it right now.

Lime fertilizer: It is good practice to have your soil tested every other year. Cornell Cooperative extension provides accurate, reliable service for a nominal fee. Remember that they are there for your needs. Give them a call at 914-285-4640.



Another good practice is avoiding soil cultivation while it's wet and too cold to touch. Generally speaking, soil that was mulched properly over winter and all year round will be much more flaky and easier to work with than bare, compacted soil.

A good garden house-keeping practice of cultivating non-compacted soil, compost and other organic materials will reduce the need for lime and other chemicals and will produce a nice clean garden.

A top dressing of Bone Meal mixed with Green Sand over your bulbs and other early blooming flowers will go a long way. As many of the irrigation systems are not in use yet, do not rely on the rain and make sure to water wherever fertilizer is used.

Most important of all: be patient. You may take your houseplants outdoors on a sunny day, but remember to bring them in at night. As for your favorite annuals - begonias, geraniums, impatients and the like - wait! The weather is not settled yet and I personally promise you that their time will come soon.

In the mean time there are many other hardy and semi-hardy cheerful flowers whose time to shine outdoors is now: Many varieties of primroses, pansies, ranunculus, anemone pulsatilla, mertensia virginica (blue bells) and much more. Visit you local garden center and see what else nature has to offer us this time of year.