Spring gardening tips prove once again it’s time to ready, plan, and plant spring flower, vegetable, and herb gardens.
Warmer weather and longer days naturally entice us to spend more time outdoors, and gardening is the outdoor activity many enjoy come spring.
Now is the time to get your garden growing ready with these spring gardening tips.
Spring Gardening Tips
Not all planting zones are created equal.
Some planting zones, climates, and soils ready for spring gardening quicker than others.
Find your zone by clicking on the link: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map
For the gardenistas who live in a zone not ready for planting, now is the time to get your garden growing plan together.
Remember, too, indoor container, planter, and windowsill gardens grow indoors year-round.
Spring gardening tips help you to decide your flower, vegetable and herb garden of preference and get your deck, patio, porch, terrace, or windowsill garden growing ready.
Best Choice Products 3-Tier 4x4ft Elevated Wooden Garden Bed Planter Kit
Good soil is the foundation of a good grow, and a good spring cleaning of sorts prepares the soil for proper growth.
With a garden fork, gently work the soil with a soft dig to loosen the soil.
You’ll only need to loosen the soil in a vegetable or flower garden one time in the spring.
Consult a weather app, Farmers Almanac, or give your local extension service a call to find out when the threat of Jack Frost is past before planting your vegetable or flower garden.
Most vegetables and flowers require approximately six hours of full sun each day.
Choose the area of your yard, deck, patio, porch, terrace, or windowsill that gets the most sun during the day and plant accordingly.
What and when to plant?
Tone on Tone
For vegetables:
Top 10 Easiest to Grow Vegetables (according to The Old Farmer’s Almanac)
Tomatoes
Zucchini squash
Peppers
Cabbage
Bush beans
Lettuce
Beets
Carrots
Chard
Radishes
Mid to late March through May is a good time to get your spring vegetable and herb garden going and growing with tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, peas, squash, eggplant, okra, basil, oregano, sage, thyme, dill, chives, rosemary, and mint.
If you’re wondering what vegetables to plant, think of food pairings.
Tomato and basil.
Spinach and lettuce.
Carrots and rosemary.
Corn and squash.
Good decorating pairings bring about a fresh look.
Good gardening pairings bring delicious flavor and delightful fragrance to the table.
Roberta’s 6-Piece Sumo Series Petunias
For flowers:
Mid March to early May is the rule of green thumb for planting perennials.
Annuals fare better when planted in late spring.
Clean out your flower beds by removing last year’s leftovers.
Cut back last year’s perennials and ornamental grasses to encourage healthy new growth.
Remove exhausted bulbs and divide perennials.
Consult your seed packet(s) for directions on when to plant, depth of planting, and spacing.
Color comes to call in the spring garden.
Peonies, wisteria, hyacinth, lilacs, and lilies fill your garden with gorgeous color and fragrance.
Lilacs grow best when planted in fertile soil and placed in full sun.
Lilacs will not fully bloom if overwatered.
A layer of compost followed by a layer of mulch helps to retain moisture and combat weeds.
Hummingbirds and butterflies are fascinating little creatures to watch. Southern Living offers spring gardening tips for almost everything gardening under the sun and shade.
Ragin’ Cajun Ruellia gives a shout out to my Louisiana roots.
Bells of Fire™ Tecoma is another perennials tubular flower that attracts both hummingbirds and butterflies.
Click here to learn more plants to spring plant that will attract hummingbirds.
I love the Cameo Japanese flowering quince in my brother’s courtyard.
A day trip to Forest Hill, Louisiana, better known as the nursery capital, to purchase a Cameo Japanese flowering quince is on the spring gardening agenda.
Azaleas in full color and full bloom means beauty and the beast I call pollen is all around as evidenced by this hot pink azalea bouquet and the pollen streams in the driveway.
Weeds are a thorn in the side, front, and back of any vegetable or flower garden.
Mulch cuts down on weeds, adds a layer of insulation, and keeps plant roots moist.
Dave the Builder used his new Craftsman Handheld Gas Leaf Blower to blow the pine needles off the roof and into the flower bed where it will be used as mulch.
Excuse our work in progress mess.
Fresh from the produce department tomatoes will do for now, but there is no substitute for fresh home garden tomatoes.
To give your tomato plants a good grow, feed the soil with a small amount of fertilizer and compost at planting time.
Plant the roots as deep as possible.
Freshly planted tomato plants will require a daily healthy watering for a couple of weeks after planting to properly seep into the soil and moisten the area.
Garden tomatoes require at least 1-2 inches of water a week.
Low and slow applies to watering tomatoes.
Water the plants low at the stem and water slowly.
Tomato plants are slow drinkers.
Flooding the area is not what we’re going for here.
Water your tomato crop once every two or three days at the height of summer.
Early morning is the best time to water.
As summer temps soar, you may want to water the plants both in the early morning and early evening on the days you water.
Bacon sandwiches, homemade hamburgers, fresh from the garden salads, and spring to summer dishes deliciously begin and end with the homegrown tomato.
As I typed fresh from the garden salads, it reminded me of the story a friend shared with me about a dinner menu conversation she had with her husband.
The friend asked her husband what he wanted for dinner.
The husband answered in perfect course order beginning with (his words not hers nor mine) a little house salad.
Curious about what exactly the husband thought a little house salad was, the friend asked the husband to expound.
“Well, you know, it’s a little salad you make at the house.”
All I know is the husband’s vegetable garden produced the best tomatoes, cucumbers, banana peppers, squash, and radishes that went into many a fresh spring to summer salad mixed and enjoyed at their house.
Leafy greens and vegetables star in the latest entertaining trend, the edible table runner.
I’m learning more and more the best way to go in spring and summer entertaining is to set a casual and inviting table, keep the menu, ingredients, music, and conversation fresh and simple, and have plenty of homemade buttermilk dressing on hand.
Spring Gardening Tips, Tools, & Accessories
Protecting your hands, skin, and feet is a must.
Sunburn, dry and weathered hands, and wet feet do not a happy gardener make.
I bought two Dove Nourishing Care Intensive-Creams on at Dollar Tree, and am so glad I did.
The formula is rich, smells divine, and has good staying power without being greasy.
I like it so much I bought five more last week.
It gets my perfect for gardening hands seal of approval.
Tools
Fiskars® 3pc DuraFrame Garden Tools Set
Ames Poly Scoop
Barebones Living Small Garden Scissors
3pc Garden Tool Set – Smith & Hawken™
Planters
White Washed Brown Faux Woven Planter
Wakefield Handmade Anduze Manchette Planter
Aged Charcoal Cast Stone Flower Rectangular Planter
Square Charcoal Cast Stone Column Planter
Watering Cans
Metal Watering Can – Smith & Hawken™
Achla Designs Haystack Pitcher Watering Jug
Herb Print Watering Can
Perfect Pour Copper Watering Can
Garden Goodies
Kalani Large Sea Grass Utility Basket with Wood Handle
Esschert Design USA Ceramic Plant Markers
Sontax Rolling Garden Cart with Tool Tray
Deluxe Metal Pulsating Sprinkler with Tripod
A lovely garden statue accentuates the design and the beauty of your garden.
Cast stone and terracotta planters in neutral tones instill a touch of European elegance.
Winter is in the rearview mirror, and our sights and tastes are set on the spring flowers and vegetables planted and produced in the spring yard, deck, patio, porch, terrace, or windowsill garden.
