Spring is the perfect time to wake up the garden! As the days draw out and the soil warms up, it’s the perfect opportunity to nourish beds, borders and lawns so they are lush and ready to produce the perfect blooms and crops. Here are some of the main spring gardening jobs to tackle through the season.
Early spring: March to early April
- Tidy up beds and borders – dig over the soil and cut back dead growth from perennials and grasses.
- Weed control – it’s a good time to get ahead of annual weeds before they set seed, so have a look around and see if any intruders are poking up.
- Mulch borders – mulch can make the difference to your crops. Apply a layer of good quality, peat-free compost or mulch around plants to add nutrients back into the soil and protect it from frosts.
- Divide perennials – revive crowded clumps of plants like geraniums or daylilies, and if you move them make sure to bed them in with good quality compost.
- Prune roses – shape and remove dead or diseased wood on bush roses, and cut back hard to encourage good blooms.
- Deadhead winter-flowering plants – plants including hellebores can be tidied up to ensure more blooms through spring.
Mid spring: April – early May
- Sow hardy annuals outdoors – choose an array of colours and shapes such as cornflowers, poppies, and nigella.
- Plant summer-flowering bulbs – these can work well in pots or borders. Good options include lilies, gladioli and dahlias.
- Feed shrubs and roses – to get the best blooms use a balanced fertiliser or specialised rose food, or pep them up with our Beds and Borders compost.
- Check staking and supports – set up some support for tall plants like delphiniums and peonies.
- Clip hedges – before new growth really takes hold, some light shaping of hedges can help create the right structure in the garden.
- Start lawn care – your grass will thank you if you take time to scarify, aerate and apply spring feed such as our Divot Mix Topsoil.
Late spring: May
- Plant out tender annuals – after the last frost, plant cosmos, marigolds and nasturtiums for bold summer colour.
- Harden off seedlings – gradually acclimate any young plants before planting out.
- Add containers and hanging baskets – for the perfect seasonal garden, full of colour and trailing plants plant out your patio pots and baskets. Take a look at our hanging baskets blog for inspiration!
How to prepare your garden for spring planting
Here’s a quick run-down of some top tips for your soil to make sure it’s ready for the planting season.
- Remove debris – get rid of as much debris as you can including rocks, stones, sticks and other items that might have found its way into your garden
- Add organic matter –organic compost or mulch can help with drainage, make digging easier, add vital nutrients to the soil and help to ‘bulk’ up sandy soils.
- Loosen thing up – dig over the soil to loosen it up and help with root growth. You can use the ‘double-dig method’ – our double digging blog post offers more information on what to do.
What fruit and vegetables to plant in spring
Here are some of the best crops to plant in your veg garden or allotment in spring. Our vegetable compost is the perfect partner, helping slowly release nutrients for strong root growth.
Asparagus – these perennial plants can grow year after year! They like partial sun, so if you have a spot with some shade, this would be the perfect place to plant. To get the best crops, try not to harvest them for the first couple of seasons – it will be worth it!
Beetroot – a go-to for vegetable growers and beginner gardeners as it’s relatively easy to grow. They thrive in fertile and well-drained soil and grow just as well in pots, so if you don’t have a garden bed, a container will work fine.
Carrots – sow instone-free soil, as stones and other debris can affect their growth and create wonky veg! They like moist soil with plenty of sunshine.
Fruit Trees – citrus plants and pot-grown fruit trees can be grown throughout the year, but sorting them out in the early spring is a good time to enjoy them later on in the year.
Lettuce – sow seeds in trays and keep them covered whilst they are getting started. Once they have grown out and can be handled, plant outside.
Strawberries – plant strawberry runners in April and you should see some growth in as little as a few weeks. Great in hanging baskets too helping keep them out of reach of slugs and snails.
Tomatoes – April or May is a good time of year to sow tomato seeds but they tolerate earlier planting too.
What flowers to plant in spring
Sowing flower seeds in spring helps bring colour and life to your outdoor space. Our Beds and Borders Compost and Spring Mulch are fantastic organic composts to help with drainage and aeration. Here are some of our favourite choices:
Sunflowers – theperfect flower for summer. Sow indoors on a sunny windowsill and once they are sturdy, or around 30cm tall, plant outside in a sunny spot in the garden. They also work well in pots.
Poppies – easy to sow – just scatter the seeds over levelled soil! Water well and they should flower in the summer or autumn. Don’t worry is there’s not much growth – they might come into their own next summer!
Cosmos – these daisy-like plants come in different shades like maroon, pink, white and orange. They are great for attracting birds, bees and butterflies so are perfect to encourage biodiversity to your garden.
Wildflowers – best sown in the autumn, but also work well in spring. Our Wildflower Topsoil can help your wildflowers thrive.
Spring gardening challenges
It’s not all smooth sailing – or smooth planting – in spring and there are plenty of challenges to be aware of. Here are a few pointers to keep you one step ahead:
- Pests – whilst pests are a nuisance all year round, slugs and snails love to nibble on new tender shoots. So, use as many organic options as possible at this early growing stage to give your plants a fighting chance. From eggshells to beer traps and copper rings our organic pest control blog can offer some useful tips.
- Frost – Even though the weather should be getting warmer, a cold snap can strike here and there. Keep an eye on the weather and if you have plants in pots, bring them inside or into a greenhouse, or use cloches or fleeces to protect tender plants from sudden frost.
- Watering – You should ensure your newly planted plants are well watered, but spring showers can mean regular downpours. Make sure you are not over-watering if there have been a few bouts of rain!
We’re here to help you get the best from your green space. Our organic and peat-free composts, topsoils and mulches can be delivered across the UK! So, if you are planning on getting stuck into your garden this spring we have all you need to give your beds, borders and lawns a boost.
