The recent weather is letting us know that Spring is right around the corner.  Following is a list of tasks and projects to complete in the garden before the snow flies:

Start Garden Cleanup
As the soil begins to dry out and you can begin to get into the yard and garden, start your cleanup. Remove winter debris, cut back perennials, prune out broken branches on trees ands shrubs, and begin to remove any protection to allow quick green-up as the days get warmer.

Wait for Soil to Dry Before Tilling
Don’t be in too much of a hurry to start working garden soil. Check soil before digging by squeezing a handful in your hand. If it crumbles easily between your fingers, go ahead and dig, but if it stays in a ball, allow the soil to dry an additional couple of days. If you dig or till too early, you will compact the soil and damage its structure. This type of damage is hard to repair.

Improve Your Soil!
Improve clay soils by adding organic matter. Plants growing in clay soil will have shallow root systems making them susceptible to a host of problems. In the Spring and/or Fall work in a 2-4 inch layer of organic material to a six to ten inch depth. We recommend Bumper Crop Organic Soil Amendment.

To Prune, or Not to Prune - That is the Question
If you must prune the biggest factor to consider is bloom time. Prune at the wrong time and there goes the next season’s bloom. The rule of thumb is: if it blooms in spring, prune right after bloom; if it blooms in summer, early spring pruning is fine. Spring blooming plants (like lilacs, spirea, and forsythia) usually bloom on old wood – the growth added the previous season – so early spring pruning would remove dormant flower buds. Prune right after flowering with the Spring bloomers. Summer blooming shrubs usually bloom on new wood or growth added since spring so late summer (after bloom) through early spring pruning won’t effect blooming. Stop in at the Garden Center and check out our variety of pruning shears.

Fertilize Trees & Shrubs
Spread fertilizer, composted manure, or compost around trees and shrubs if not done last year. You can spread it on snow if necessary. It’s best to get it on the ground before new growth begins. If the soil is dry, be sure to water it in well. Ask about our Master Nursery Multi-Purpose Fertilizer or for an organic alternative, Dr. Earth All Purpose Fertilizer.

Deer? Not Here!
If the local family of deer enjoy munching on your early spring flowers, maybe its time for a deer-resistant menu! Deer tend to avoid plants with strong smelling, fuzzy or prickly leaves. Consider not only daffodils and hellebores (Lenten Rose), but columbine, brunnera, epimedium, pulmonaria, and lamium in your early spring garden. For a more extensive list of plants that deer tend to avoid or information on our all natural Deer Repellant, stop by the Garden Center.

Cut Back Ornamental Grasses
Take advantage of the warm spells by cutting back your ornamental grasses. Cut the dead foliage to about four to six inches. If old foliage is left in place the plants will start growing much later. Trying to cut out dead leaves after new growth has started will damage the new growth. Ornamental grasses can be divided in the spring especially if the center of the plant has died out or if it has overgrown its space.

Divide Perennials
Divide perennials in the spring. When flowers get smaller, when the center of the plant dies out or when the plant outgrows its space it is time to divide. Dig around the plant and lift the clump out of the ground. Break the clump into sections. Larger sections will re-establish quicker than smaller sections. Keep the clumps moist until ready to plant.