While you were out enjoying the sunshine in the recent ‘heatwave’, so were the plants in your garden. A quick glance around your green space and you’ll see that most plants have sprung to life, with leaves, budsand a few pests to boot!
At this time of year, it’s easy to let your garden get ahead of you, but these simple tasks now will reap you rewards later on.
Start hardening off plants
Any plants you’ve started off under cover will have gotten used to the comfort you’ve given them, and plonking them straight outside will come as a bit of a shock! To ensure a good show later in the year, pop your plants outside when you leave for work, and bring them back in when you get home. They’ll put on stronger growth and be able to resist pests much better.
Tackle pests now
The creepy crawlies are now out in full-force, and thanks to a tough winter, they’ll make short work of your plants. In particular, check your roses. The infamous blackspot fungus will be making itself apparent, and can be treated early with a spray-on fungicide. These sprays often double as insecticides for those spotting aphids on their beloved buds, but always follow the instructions carefully, as they can pose a risk to many beneficial pollinators.�
Beer-traps and nematodes are safe ways to deal with slugs and snails – hold off on pellets as they break down in the rain and even when effective cause slugs to die in a very slimey way that’s difficult to clean up!
Keep sowing seeds
If you’re looking at seed packets and thinking you’ve missed your window, you’ve actually done the right thing! This year, your seeds will greatly benefit from a later sowing, as the soil has taken a long time to heat up. Your plants will still flower, just a little bit later than usual.
Mow the lawn
Yes, it’s time to start weekly mowing again, if the grass is ever dry enough. If it is too damp to cut with your mower, make the most of the conditions to do some lawn repair. The warmer, wet weather is perfect for planting seed to patch up your lawn.
Sit back, and enjoy it!
It’s a busy time of year for gardening, but don’t forget that it should be enjoyed too. Grab a cuppa and sit for a while. You can use this time to evaluate the bare patches and brainstorm ideas you’d like to try out in your garden.
