BECKY’S SUGGESTED PROPERTY MAINTENANCE FOR LATE SPRING EARLY SUMMER
Now that plant selection has increased dramatically, it is time to scope out the best of the best plants for the season. Every year hundreds of new plants make their debut and a portion of them are viable selections that we can actually get our hands on besides just seeing them in magazines. Many new plants are only available in very limited quantities so it is a good idea to grab them early.

Even when your gardens seem already full, there is always room for improvement. For instance, say you started an old cutting from a neighbor’s lilac bush 15 years ago, and now it is an unattractive woody mess that provides you with a few blooms for a couple of weeks, trust us when we tell you that you can do better! Not all plants need replacing, but now growers have enhanced varieties to repeat bloom, bloom for a longer period of time, or offer attributes that they didn’t have previously like disease resistance.

There is always room for a new small tree, shrub, perennial, annual or aquatic plant; and now is the time to make your garden shine! The first burst of early color has probably diminished already and the early bloomers should be pruned right after they finish blooming. It is important to do this before they start to set buds for the following spring. Spring bulbs should have their foliage tied down to encourage the nutrients to return to the bulb for next season, and only after the leaves are brown should they be pruned away.

It’s the perfect time to create container gardens for you entrances, decks, patios and driveway planters. The options are endless, so try something new because it is fun! We recommend using a good quality potting soil with fertilizer, or add a slow release fertilizer when planting annuals in containers or beds.

Keep weeds at bay now, because if you leave them go, you will have a much bigger mess later in the summer. If there is a problem with thistle or dandelion, be sure to get the entire root by digging them out to remove them entirely. Do not let weeds go to seed or they will scatter unwanted seeds that spread quickly.