How To Prepare Your Garden This Spring

Are you new to gardening and want to try your hand at it? Or are you usually green-fingered but have let your yard grow into an unkempt mess over the winter? If your garden requires sprucing up, follow our six tips for looking after your yard this spring.

Know your garden 

Begin by understanding what kind of garden you have and what you want to do with it. Knowing whether it is north or south-facing, for example, will help you later when it comes to choosing your plants and caring for them. 

It is also a good idea to plan your yard. How many plants do you want, and where will they best thrive? If you have a north-facing garden, you might not want a lawn but opt for extra-wide borders with shade-loving plants.

Get the right tools 

Are you a beginner gardener? It might be a good idea to start investing in the tools of the trade. Some basics you might need are a shovel or trowel, rake, lawnmower, secateurs, and a watering can or hose. The bigger items you might be able to borrow from friends or neighbours. 

You might also wish to source a heavy-duty pair of gardening gloves to protect your hands.

Cleaning up 

Before you begin laying down your new plants, you need to clean up your lawn and flower beds. 

Start by pruning damaged and lower branches — for most shrubs, it is important this step is done before spring. Put your new tools to use to clean up leaves, route out weeds and mow the grass. Make sure to dig up weeds by the roots and get on top of them before they seed. 

To sort out your flower beds, use your rake to loosen the soil to allow the oxygen through to the plants’ roots. You might also need to redefine the beds as they might have become untidy over winter. Use a metal edger to form neater edges to your flower beds.

What to plant 

Now you have a well-groomed but perhaps slightly empty garden. It might be a good idea to ask a nearby garden centre what plants thrive in your climate. Make sure to include native plants that will do well in your environment. It is also essential to invest in quality plants and soils, as they’ll flourish for a lot longer rather than the temptingly cheap products from your local supermarket. 

You might also consider planting flowers that are especially good for the environment. It is easy to include bee-friendly flowers to encourage local native bees to prosper. Daisies and lavender, for example, attract bees to pollinate your garden and other wild plants. 

You will want to attract bees to encourage healthier plant life and provide habitats for other wildlife, furthering the richness and liveliness of your garden.

Greening your garden 

There are many other ways to create an environmentally friendly garden. Have you considered making a compost system? Composting is easy, and it reduces waste, saves money and improves the quality of your plant life. Composting reuses vital nutrients to create more prosperous, healthier soil for your plants. 

The two main groups for your compost bin are green and brown materials, such as fruit and vegetable scraps or the dry leaves you raked up in step 3. 

You can also use recycled and repurposed items to make plant pots or garden features, such as plastic containers for planters or an old piece of furniture as an outdoor fountain.

Keeping it up 

Now, you have set up and prepared your garden for spring. The next step is learning how to care for it. 

Watching out for pests and watering your plants are the two main ways to ensure a healthy garden. It is essential to know how often you should be watering your plants — also taking note of natural rainfall doing the job for you. A good rule of thumb is to soak the roots (not the leaves) once a week rather than doing a little each day. 

Maintaining a beautiful and rich garden is very fulfilling and exciting. If you follow our tips and look after your budding plants, your garden will thrive.