As the sun starts to make more of a regular appearance, and Easter a distant memory, every garden owner is starting to think about getting their outdoor space ready for the spring and summer months ahead. After a long winter, and especially after all the rain we’ve had, it can be hard to know where to start! Whether your garden is a blank canvas or already established, we’ve got some top tips on getting your garden ready for spring.
War On Weeds
Spring is a very important time to get on top of weeds, especially before they get more established and take the light and water from the plants you actually want in your garden. Tackling them early and keeping up with any new appearances is easier than letting the weeds take hold. RHS's Top Tips include:
- Hoeing: Run a hoe over a bed or between rows to kill most weed seedlings. Ideally, this will be done on a dry day with a light wind, so that the seedlings will dry out on the surface of the bed rather than re-rooting into moist soil.
- Hand-pulling or hand-weeding with a fork: Pull up annual weeds by hand before they set seed. Perennial weeds should be dug out with as much root (or bulb) as possible, using a hand or border fork.
- Weed knife and other weeding tools: A weed knife has a hooked end and is a very useful tool for weeding between paving slabs and along path edging.
- Repeated cutting: In large weedy areas, repeated cutting to ground level over several years will weaken and even kill some weeds. This is usually done with a strimmer.
- Flame gun: Scorch off weeds between paving slabs and on driveways by blasting them with a flame gun. Use only when the foliage is dry and allow sufficient burn-time for deep-rooted weeds, such as dandelions, to be killed.
Be Frost Focused
It’s easy to get swept up in the optimism of spring, but remember that it’s not unusual to have frost (and even snow) as late as April here in the UK. So keep a close eye on the weather forecast, and if we are due any unseasonably cold weather protect plants with cloches or horticultural fleece.
Don’t forget to keep yourself cosy whilst out in the garden! Long length socks are ideal for spring gardening, and with an official TOG rating of 2.3, our thermal Wellington Boot socks will make your wellies super comfortable and reliably toasty.
Also, our thermal headbands and great at keeping ears cosy and warm, ideal for those colder mornings out in the garden.
No Mow May
Get ready to take part in Plantlife’s No Mow May campaign, where they encourage garden owners to hold off cutting the grass until later in the season. The reason? We’ve lost nearly 97% of flower-rich meadows since the 1930’s and with them gone are vital food needed by pollinators, like bees and butterflies.
But even the smallest of grassy spaces can help, and a healthy lawn with some long grass and wildflowers benefits wildlife, tackles pollution and can even lock away carbon below ground.
Be Wildlife Friendly
Leading on from this, there’s lots of things you can do to make your garden wildlife friendly, and spring is an excellent time to start. Whether that’s starting a compost heap, building an insect hotel or simply leaving a gap in your fence to allow for hedgehogs and frogs to move from plot to plot, every little helps.
Finally... Enjoy The Fruits Of Your Labour!
So here’s hoping the sun’s out, and you can get some time to relax, watch the wildlife and enjoy your garden. And when the sun goes in, and it does get a bit chilly, wrap up warm with a Heat Holders Thermal Blanket.
