March traditionally comes in like a lion and out like a lamb. It’s time to visit Mendham Garden Supply in New Jersey to check off the early-spring “to-dos!”
Gardening To-Dos for March
It’s no surprise that while mid-winter to-do lists are rather short, March’s list brings us out of hibernation. Pour a cup of coffee or your favorite energizing tea and let’s get to work.
1. Crabgrass Control
Crabgrass runners are tenacious. Using organic, pre-emergent herbicides is your best, first-line defense. These savvy herbicides kill the newly sprouting crabgrass roots so they can’t take hold in the soil. Afterwards, apply post-emergent crabgrass and weed killers to address any errant rebels. This two-phase approach is the best way to prevent crabgrass from taking over your lawn.
2. Time Fertilization Applications For Success
Nourishing your landscapes is a year-round job, but early spring is the best time to give your flowers, plants, and shrubs the boost they need to thrive. Mendham garden supply in New Jersey offers fertilizing options for every soil type and species. Apply fertilizer when you notice plants and trees are beginning to wake up and grow.
3. Lime, Seed, and Prep the Garden
If you haven’t done so already, we highly recommend bringing soil samples to your garden supply in New Jersey. Lawn and landscape plants fare best when soil conditions are customized to their needs. Most grasses prefer soil pH between 5.8 and 7.2 (on the slightly acidic to neutral side).
Adding lime along with grass seed (in separate applications to monitor ratio) optimizes the soil’s pH after last year’s growing season. We’ll also help you prep your other garden beds to optimize their soil conditions.
4. Cold & Early Crop, Trees & Shrub Planting
By now, cold and early crop seedlings (pansies, stock, cruciferous veggies, kale, etc.) are already thriving or are ready to be planted into cozy, prepared beds.
Wait until your garden supply specialist gives the go ahead before planting new trees or shrubs. If you plant too early, and we get a last freeze or two, new additions suffer. Waiting until late summer/early fall may be best. Otherwise, hold off on planting new trees and shrubs until above-freezing nighttime temps are the norm.
5. Divide Perennials (don’t wait until fall)
People mistakenly believe that fall is the best time to divide perennials, but that depends on where you live. Here, where fall weather can be cold and potentially freeze, we coach customers to divide perennials in the late spring, when the soil remains warmer than the air temperature for a few hours or more each day.
6. Weed Prevention
As with lawns, spring is the best time to proactively get ahead of weeds. Your garden supply in New Jersey offers weed prevention agents for every type of offender.
7. Spray Fruit Trees
Spring triggers growth in the plants we love, as well as the pests we don’t. While spraying instructions vary depending on the tree species, pest(s), disease(s), or season – some of the most helpful sprays (dormant, fungicide) should be sprayed in warmer temps but before buds flower. It’s a well-choreographed dance.
8. Clean Up or Build Your Pond
Ponds create rewarding micro-ecosystems in landscapes. Now’s the time to flush pumps and water lines, remove debris and residual algae, and get your pond into shape. Interested in adding a pond? Visit your garden supply in New Jersey to learn how.
Mendham Garden Centers are more than just a garden supply in New Jersey. We are family owned and operated. Our staff is dedicated to educating and supporting our community’s gardeners, landscapers, and farmers – whether you’re a beginner or honoring a third-generation tradition. Visit one of our three locations – Mendham, Annandale, or Chester – and speak one-on-one with our friendly and expert gardening specialists. We’ll get you going on the March checklist so you’re prepared to move forward with mid-spring tasks.