Gardening Tips for April With temperatures rising, everything


will be growing now, especially the lawns. Cut them regularly, but not too short, and go around the edges with a half moon edger to give a good edge to the lawn. Add the cuttings to the compost heap in thin layers, between coarser garden and vegetable waste. Too large a layer will result in a soggy mess instead


of nice useful compost. At the beginning of the month, feed the lawns with a spring fertiliser with added moss killer if this is a problem. Don’t overdose by using too much, but the moss killer will leave black patches as it works. After a couple of weeks, use a spring tine rake to remove any dead moss and other plant debris. You will be surprised how much can be removed. Do not add treated grass to the compost heap.


Tie in new shoots of climbing and rambling roses as horizontally as possible and also tie twining climbers, such as honeysuckle and clematis, to supports. Be careful with clematis as they snap easily. These and shrubs will benefi t from having a slow release fertiliser, or rose food, hoed in around the roots. Mulch afterwards to keep weeds down and moisture in. Tender perennials and shrubs like penstemon, teucreum and perovskia can be pruned now. Later in the month remove the dead heads from hydrangeas. It is a good idea to also take out two or three old stems from the base on established plants to encourage new shoots. Daffodil fl owers will be dying, so nip off the heads, leaving the stems and foliage. Leave these for at least six weeks as this will build the bulbs up for next year and also feed them. Not doing this is often the reason for a lack of fl owers in the following year.


Keep deadheading winter bedding and it will keep fl owering for some time. If you have pots with permanent planting in them, try to remove the top few inches of compost and add a fresh layer. If they are becoming rootbound, repot into a slightly larger pot. If this isn’t possible, it may be necessary to take them out – cut


off some of the root ball from the base and loosen the roots in order to add fresh compost. Keep them well watered afterwards.


In the fi rst half of the month, plant second early potatoes and then the maincrop in the second half. Sow vegetable seeds outdoors in a prepared seed bed. Courgette, squash and pumpkin seeds can be grown in modules indoors now ready for planting out in June.


If you would rather buy your plants, don’t be in too much of a hurry. Garden centres will soon be selling summer bedding, but it is much too soon to plant them outside. If you have a greenhouse you could plant baskets up, but keep them inside until May and gradually harden them off.


Broadstone in Bloom will be having a plant sale on 8th April in front of Lloyds Bank and will have shrubs and perennials for sale and also tomato plants, but they will need to be kept indoors and warm until the end of May.


Denise Hill Broadstone in Bloom


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