April 2021 Gardening Advice

Tomato seedlings

submitted by Jennifer Fairfield, Garden Mill and Manchester Community & School Gardens

I think the month of March got itself a little confused this year — it’s supposed to go out like a lamb, but the wind the last few days was definitely much more lion-like! Of course, the weather throughout the whole month was anything but normal — but I’m not complaining! All those warmer, sunnier days last month were just what we all needed. I think Wednesday’s weather was Mother Nature’s idea of an April Fool’s joke, but, even though the next few days were a bit of a step back, it doesn’t look like the chillier temps are going to last very long. Which is just wonderful, since I am seriously in the gardening mood!

If you are also in the mood to garden, you’re in luck — there’s lots that we can be doing, both indoors and out, this month!

• Before starting to plant outdoors, test your soil. Soil conditions change over time, so it’s best to test it every year. Knowing what your soil is lacking, if anything, makes giving it what it needs to support good plant growth so much easier. This goes for every sort of garden, whether in the ground, in raised beds, or in containers, if you are using soil that was used for gardening of any sort in the past. If you are starting with fresh potting soil in your containers, make sure you know what is in it, before you start adding any fertilizer.
• Make sure your garden tools are ready for the season. You’ll have an easier time of it if you sharpen, clean, and lubricate pruners, and loppers. Shovels will also work better — taking less effort on your part — if sharpened. Check gloves and garden hoses for holes, and replace if necessary. Assess garden supports and stakes to make sure they are in good shape, and replace those that won’t make it through the season. Have your lawn mower and other power equipment serviced so that it’s ready to go when the grass starts growing. Make sure you have what you need for the season.
  
• This weekend, start pepper and tomato seeds indoors, so they will be ready to put out in your garden in about eight weeks. Eggplant should be started about a week later than the other two, and gets put out in the garden about a week later, as well. Plan to put tomato and pepper plants out in the garden around Memorial Day — by then, the nighttime temperatures are pretty consistently above 50°, and we aren’t likely to see frost again until fall. Eggplant likes it even warmer than the other two, so waiting a week to get them in the ground will give them a better chance to grow and produce. Putting plants out before the temperatures are to their liking will only stunt their growth, so don’t be in too much of a hurry.
  
• Pull mulch away from plants that are starting to poke up out of the ground as it warms up to help the soil warm up more quickly. Plan to cover the plants back up if temps head below freezing at night again. Add a top dressing of compost to your soil, after you pull the mulch back, to help improve soil structure and fertility. Wait to add new mulch to your planting beds, trees, and shrubs until the soil has warmed up fully — usually after Mother’s Day, or even as late as Memorial Day weekend, though it could be a little earlier this year. Just be careful not to put down new mulch too soon as that can keep the soil from warming up, and slow your plants’ growth and flowering.
• With all the wind we’ve had, there are bound to be branches that have fallen in your yard. Get those cleaned up, along with any driveway gravel that may have been plowed onto the lawn that one time we had snow this winter, in order to make lawn-mowing easier, when it’s time. Rake up leaves that are on the lawn as well. On a dry day later in the month, rake them into a pile and then run them over with a lawn mower to chop them into small pieces. These bits of leaves make a great (free!) mulch that you can add to your flower beds, trees, and shrubs. Just don’t do this until we have daytime temps consistently above 50° so that insects that might be hibernating in them have a chance to come out
  
• Also wait until daytime temperatures are consistently in the 50s to cut back grasses and most perennials that you left standing over the winter. The reason to wait until it has warmed up is to give the beneficial insects that have spent the winter in the hollow stems and on the leaves of your plants a chance to wake up. If you just have to cut things back and clean up earlier, don’t discard or burn what you remove — carefully place it somewhere else on your property that is out of sight. If you remove the debris from your yard altogether, you remove those insects (bees, butterflies, and other beneficials like praying mantis) from your yard as well, and lose the great things they can do for your gardens.
  
• Wait to cut back semi-woody and woody perennials until the end of the month, then decide how much you want to trim based on where you see new growth, and how you want the plant to appear. Semi-woody perennials are ones that form woody stems, but aren’t as substantial as true shrubs or trees, and include Russian sage, lavender, and some thymes.
• Apply weed preventer to your lawn this month to keep the seeds of dandelion, crab grass, and other weeds from putting down roots when they germinate. Using corn gluten, an organic, natural weed preventer, which also naturally contains nitrogen, can help get the lawn growing. It won’t kill perennial weeds that already exist in your lawn, but will keep new seeds from taking hold.
  
• Some things can go into your garden earlier than many others. Peas, lettuce, and spinach can be planted as soon as the soil is workable. Carrots, radishes, and beets can go in once the soil temperature is above 40°.  Don’t plant all that you want to of these crops at once, though. Planting things in “succession” — planting some now, and some more in a week or two, and some more a week or so after that — helps you spread your harvest out, so that you can enjoy them longer into the season, rather than all at once. Just keep in mind that peas, lettuce, spinach, and radishes are cool-weather plants that won’t do well as the temperatures start to really warm up.
• The simple way to tell if your soil is ready to be worked in (and on) is to take a handful of soil and squeeze it. When you open your hand, if the ball stays together, it’s too wet. If it falls apart and is a bit crumbly, then it’s safe to venture into the garden.
• Cabbage and kale transplants, as well as onion sets, can generally go out by mid-month; broccoli and cauliflower transplants should be OK to go out by the end of the month.
• Pansies and primrose can go in flower beds and containers outside now, but keep row covers handy – it is Michigan, after all. It is almost a given that we will yet see one or more nights (or even days) when the temperature drops below freezing, and new growth is more tender than old, so your plants are more vulnerable at this time. Row covers can help protect your plants from frost and freeze, by keeping the warmth of the soil around the plant.
  
• Around the end of the month or early in May, if it looks like we have seen the end of frost, divide summer-blooming perennials that you didn’t get to in the fall (you can divide spring-bloomers, but they may not bloom this spring). If you have more plants than you have room for, give some away to friends and neighbors, or swap them for plants you don’t have, but want
• Plant dormant trees and shrubs once the soil can be worked. To make sure you’re giving your trees and shrubs have the best chance at survival, be sure to plant them properly. The Arbor Day foundation has details for planting various types of trees, which can also be applied to shrubs at https://www.arborday.org/trees/planting/

For the birds:

• Put up birdhouses now. If you’re interested in attracting bluebirds to your yard, the Michigan Bluebird Society has lots of great tips at ttps://michiganbluebirds.org/nestbox-basics. You can also find out what it takes to be a purple martin landlord with information from the Purple Martin Conservation Association at https://www.purplemartin.org/. Both of these birds are wonderful to have in your yard, because they eat lots of insects. Just be careful about applying pesticides in your yard and garden if you are attracting birds to your yard, as they can both kill off the birds' food supply, and potentially cause the birds themselves harm if they ingest insects that have been poisoned.
  
• Check existing birdhouses before cleaning them out to make sure they aren’t already being occupied. If the nesting materials in the box look at all new and fresh, leave them — it’s an indication you already have tenants. If the materials look old, clean them out to give the birds a fresh start.
  
• If you’re considering putting out nesting materials for your birds, be sure to check out the Audubon Society’s website to learn the do’s and don’ts first at https://www.audubon.org/news/what-nesting-materials-are-safe-birds.
• I have seen a number of pictures from people in Michigan who have spotted Northern Orioles at feeders already this year, which surprises me, because I don’t typically think of them as being here this early. But, just in case, I pulled my feeders out this weekend. I love watching these beauties at my feeders!
  
• I have not seen any evidence of hummingbirds yet, though. Generally, we start seeing them in mid-April to early May. Make sure your feeders are ready for them — check for cracks and replace them if needed. As the temperatures start to warm up, put your feeders out during the day to help early arrivers find food. If the temps dip below freezing at night, be sure to bring the feeders indoors to prevent cracking.

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by Sara Swanson

Sara Swanson is an editor, writer and founder of the Manchester Mirror.