Spring Garden Maintenance: Pest Control, Soil Care, and Pruning Tips for a Flourishing Oasis

Once you’ve finished tidying your outdoor space, check your beds and wooden structures for signs of pests or infestation, as you don’t want your hard work being immediately undone.

Ideally, you should check your garden weekly, in either the morning or late afternoon, as this is when pests are most active.

 

When you’re looking for signs of pests and insects, keep an eye out for hibernating pests such as slugs, snails and aphids, make sure to check the soil shows any signs of unearthed roots or droppings, which will indicate that pests have been digging in your beds. If you’re able to, cloches can be an effective method of preventing larger animals such as rabbits and squirrels from pinching your produce.

 

If a plant has any problems, their leaves will let you know. Look out for discolouration, spots, and scorching, as they’ll indicate if it’s lacking water or nutrients, while spots and wilting show because of fungal growth or root disease. The best way to prevent disease is by regularly removing all dead plant debris, especially fallen fruit, which will help stop the spread.

When you’re planning what to grow, it’s worth considering which plants are best adapted to preventing pests, lavender’s strong smell is a deterrent to flies and mice, while simultaneously attracting pollinators such as bees and butterflies.

 

Once you’re satisfied it’s just you attempting to eat your produce, turn your attention to the soil. If it’s looking compacted, break up the top layer, and turn it using a garden fork to aerate the soil, this will improve the structure and make is easier for roots to permeate and absorb water. Consider adding a layer of compost as before you turn your soil to help restore any lost nutrients from your previous crop, while for heavy clay soils you may need to incorporate some sharp sand and rotten organic material to improve structure and drainage.

 

To finish off the beds, or any exposed soil, apply a layer of mulch (decaying leaves, bark or compost) as this will help to regulate the soil’s temperature when it warms up, isolating and insulating the soil, creating a barrier which traps in moisture below simultaneously making plants more drought resistant, while promoting optimal root growth. As well as helping with water retention, mulch also helps prevent soil erosion, reducing the impact of heavy rainfall and high winds.

 

You’ll want to consider pruning if you garden has any trees, bushes, or shrubs, to manage and direct their growth. Begin by removing any dead, damaged, or diseased wood from trees using sheers, along with any overgrown or damaged branches to encourage healthy growth and flowering. Roses will be the first to need a trim, either in late winter or early spring, giving them enough time to recover before growth starts, though you should leave flowering shrubs until after they bloom.

 

Pruning is essential for fruit trees, by trimming their branches you’ll be increasing their productivity, as well as improving fruit quality. By thinning out the tree’s canopy, you’ll be allowing sunlight to penetrate the inner branches, which is vital for flower bud development, while encouraging the tree’s energy towards fruit production and away from developing branches.

 

If you spot overlapping branches rubbing against each other remove one, where possible, as this will prevent the creation of wounds, which encourages the spread of disease. When you dispose of the removed material, be sure to add it to your compost, aside from dead wood.