This is the month when a lot of trees and shrubs are a mass of colour and the spring bulbs are looking their best. As soon as the daffodils die down, the dead flower heads will need to be removed but the leaves must be left and the bulbs will need feeding.
In the kitchen garden seed potatoes, onions, asparagus crowns and brassica seedlings can be planted now and the majority of vegetables can be sown outside too. Runner beans, marrows, peppers, tomatoes and courgettes will need to be sown inside so that the plants will be ready to plant out at the end of May when frosts are less likely. Keep on top of the hoeing and feeding, and water plants as necessary.
Hardy bedding plants can be planted or sown direct now. Tender plants will have to wait until next month. Gladiolus bulbs can now go in and so can dahlia tubers. Herbaceous perennials can still be divided and planted and taller plants will need to be staked and tied. Roses will need to be sprayed at regular intervals now so that black spot, rust and mildew are kept away, and feeding with Toprose fertilizer from time to time will help. Toprose is also a good fertilizer for shrubs and perennials, but heathers, azaleas, rhododendrons and camellias will need a special ericaceous feed. If you have a greenhouse, hanging baskets and containers can be planted up now and there are a host of suitable plants for these in the garden centre now.
Although there is no longer a hosepipe ban, we do need to save as much water as possible. Mulches help conserve water in flower beds and the gardening magazines are full of water-saving ideas at the moment.
Now is the time to start to cut the grass and to apply fertilizer and weedkiller to lawns. The only time a lawn needs watering is after applying something like lawn sand so as to prevent scorching. Never water a lawn in dry weather – it is a total waste of water, often doing more harm than good. April is a good month for sowing grass and laying turf. Aerating lawns will discourage the growth of moss but it might be necessary to use a mosskiller as well.
Capel Manor have their Spring Garden Show from Friday 13 to Sunday 15 April and both the Saville Gardens in Windsor Great Park and the R.H.S. Gardens at Wisley in Surrey are well worth a visit. Next month, the Malvern Spring Show (from 11 to 13 May) and the Chelsea Flower Show from 22 to 26 May – don’t forget to book early for this one.
Terry Simmonds