As the weather warms up, it’s time to prepare your landscape for spring planting. Remove branches, leaves, and twigs accumulated in corners of your yard and under shrubs. Fertilize and seed your lawn and prepare your soil.
Here are some other ways to prepare your landscape for spring planting as recommended by landscapers that serve Santa Rosa.
Deal With Pests
Pests such as aphids, slugs, snails, and white vine weevil larvae can stunt plant growth, spread disease-causing pathogens, and cause leaves, buds, and flowers to deform. To get rid of pests, turn over your soil and spray it with a broad-spectrum biodegradable insecticide.
Clear and Mulch Flower Beds & Landscape Beds
While checking your topsoil for pests, get rid of garden weeds and ensure the soil isn’t compacted. Be sure to apply mulch and turn your soil over using a shovel if it has become compacted during the winter. If you have any leftover mulch or leaf litter from the previous season, mix it in.
Kill weeds permanently by pulling them out by their roots so they do not grow back. Burn garden weeds or place them in the center of an established compost pile. The microbes in the compost will produce heat, killing the weeds placed in it. Alternatively, dispose of weeds in the municipal trash. Once your beds are clean and any new or replacement plants are set in place, replace the old mulch.
Fertilize
Next, fertilize your planting beds. When choosing between different types of fertilizers, consider the needs of your plants. Irrespective of the kind of fertilizer you use, give it plenty of time to spread throughout your soil. Add a thick layer of mulch to prevent problems down the line and ensure that your plants get the nutrients they need for growth.
Shear Shrubs
If the shrubs in your garden haven’t begun to bud yet, you can prune them. However, if they have already started to grow, it's best to leave them alone. To move shrubs from one area in your yard to another, carefully pull them by their roots and replant them.
Set Up New Planters and Garden Beds
Now is the right time to add new plants to your garden. When choosing plants, make sure they are adapted to the local climate. Once you have selected plants for your yard, place them in new planters or raised plant beds.
Plant Seeds Early
Some plants need more time to grow and develop than others and should be planted earlier in the season. Typical examples of such plants include begonias, geraniums, peppers, and antirrhinums. If you want to grow veggies such as onions, artichokes, and potatoes in your garden, plant them indoors early in the season and then move them out to your garden as temperatures increase. Whether you need help designing & building a new landscape or want to maintain an existing one, Gardenworks can help. Our landscapers have the expertise to transform your landscaping dream into reality. We serve Santa Rosa, Healdsburg, and the entirety of Sonoma County. To make an appointment, call (707) 857-2050.