April soon already and Easter on it's way with so much needed to be done in gardens right now, weeding, hedge trimming, cutting back summer growth, spraying, mulching, building new compost heaps then all those leaves ....(Whew, no pressure)
Cuttings: I take cuttings in April while the ground is still holding warmth to stimulate root growth, deep trays packed with moist river sand are ready here for cuttings. Purple sage, geranium, breath of heaven, buxus, fuchia, escalonia, succulents, lavender rosemary, lonicera, hebe's can all be taken now, deciduous. hardwood cuttings are taken during winter when plants have lost leaves and are dormant.
Take time to look around the garden to see what plants flowered well over summer and those that have not because of trees getting wider and blocking out light. The plants that would suffer most are dahlia's, some may not flowered at all from lack of light and moisture and others get hidden behind other plants. Dig up and transplant into a sunnier spot, leaving the top growth on to die off back into the tubers. Other plants suffering the same could be dwarf agapantha, roses, asters and dianthas, all of these need a lot of sunshine and light to perform well.
If looking to improve the look of established gardens a front border will do the trick, there are so many suitable plants that maybe multiplying around your garden like lambs ear, with it's lovely silver textured leaf, variegated and dwarf iris, blue grass, dwarf agapantha, hosta's, helibours, purple sage, thyme, erigeron daisy and violas, plus heaps of other low growing evergreen plants that cuttings or divisions can be taken from right now to create borders. All these plants I have mentioned look great planted en masse in long rows to change the look of a garden.
Sowing seeds: The following flower seeds can still be sown now aquilegia, calendula (marigold) lupins, stocks, sweet peas, dianthus, antirrhinum (snap dragons) some will already be germinating around where these plants have been growing. I pot up most worthy plants that nature supplies to be planted out either before or after winter depending on the maturity of them.
Lilies:Top dress lilies with blood and bone and compost, one cup of blood and bone to each bucket of compost. If you need to shift lilies, never let them dry out, get them back in the ground straight away or store them in a wet towel until ready to transplant.
Wrenching shrubs to be shifted: Still time for wrenching shrubs and trees that need to be moved by digging around one half of their roots and leaving the other half untouched for a few months. Make a trench around the lifted roots and fill with soft compost, the cut roots will form new feeder roots into the compost which will make the eventual transplant cope better. Remember plants which have had their root system reduced should also have their top growth reduced.
Fruit:In cooler areas citrus trees, especially when young should have a temporary roof for frost protection put in place soon. Grapes will be ripening for birds if not covered, picked bunches do not continue to ripen, they need to ripen on the vine. This has been a good season for apples, get them picked and stored in a cool place, remove any damaged apples as they will eventually spoil others.
Veg and fruit
Tomatoes need all the daylight hours now to ripen, remove all shading leaves.Sweet pepper plants that need more time to ripen can be dug up, put into a pot and placed under shelter to continue growing if there is any threat of frost.
Sow a green crop, adding humus to vacant vegetable plots will improve the soil, Blue lupin, mustard, wheat, barley or oats are good for this purpose. Dug in just before the crop reaches the flowering stage.
Cheers, Linda
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