While it still feels like winter in parts of the country, we’re only 8 days away from the first day of Spring! Not that I’m counting…
And if you have a garden or some potted plants at home, now is a great time to start focusing on helping your flowers bloom.
Easier said than done, right? I know that gardening isn’t always easy or predictable… but I came up with a few tips to help your plants flourish as we head into spring.
Check out my gardening tips below!
Take Tool Inventory
Just like a chef needs a good set of knives, a gardener needs a good set of tools!
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You want to make sure you have all the tools you need on hand before you begin tending to your garden.
Because once you start, you want to easily move from one step to the next without needing to step away.
The first tool you’ll need in your collection is a sharp set of pruners.
Notice I say sharp. You can either swap your old set for a new one or you can sharpen them.
If you go the sharpening route, you can use an at-home sharpener, or you can head to your local gardening center where they’ll be able to get your pruners in tip-top shape.
My favorite little gardening tool is called the Dirty Little Digger and it serves as a replacement for a variety of tools including a cultivator, trowel, weeder, scoop and bulb digger.
This nifty collapsable bucket is another great item to have on hand. It’s sturdy, easy to store and it’s ideal for weeding and harvesting.
Don’t forget your gloves! These ones are super lightweight but treated with a coating that makes them three times more puncture resistant.
So, they look good, feel good AND work wonderfully!
Oh, and if you need plants to do your planting, be sure to check out our collection of live plants in the Just Jill Shop!
Make Your Bed!
After taking inventory of all of your tools, it’s time to prep your garden for the plants that will make it a home.
Give all of your garden beds a good cleaning by removing debris from the fall and winter months.
And don’t forget to do the same with your pots and planters! You’d be surprised how much excess stuff ends up in there.
Another recommendation I have is to aerate the soil a bit.
You can do this by simply turning it and making sure some of the soil that was sitting below makes its way to the top.
Next comes something none of us enjoy doing… but it needs to be done! Weeding.
Make sure you pull from the root so that the weeds don’t break and come back soon after.
You can make use of that Dirty Little Digger I showed you above since it’s designed to snag those pesky weeds right out of the dirt.
I also like to carry around a bucket to make tossing everything easier. That way, I don’t have to continue running back to one spot over and over!
(my favorite is this one we carry in the Just Jill Shop!)
If you’re using a big pot for planting, it can get heavy if you fill the entire thing with potting soil.
My recommendation? Cut up an old pool noodle and place it in the bottom of the pot!
This won’t hinder the growth of your flowers and plants, but it will make the weight of your pot much lighter.
And don’t forget to put your terracotta pots in a saucer! They might look harmless, but they can easily stain your porch or deck.
Gardening Tips to Help Your Plants Thrive
Now that your plants are in place, there are steps you can take to help them last all season long.
Take a close look at the health of your plants. Get rid of all of those brown leaves, deadhead properly, and prune any dried-out branches that are far beyond saving.
This is where those sharp pruners will come in handy!
Working with potted plants can be a serious space-saver. I call it vertical gardening!
But the downside to using pots like the one above is that the soil dries out quickly.
You can fight the dryness by adding a light layer of mulch on the top. This actually helps retain moisture.
And if you really want your plants and flowers to last, fertilization is key! I like to use a water-based fertilizer since it’s easy to pour when I’m in the process of planting.
Have some kiddos running around? Let them join in on a day of gardening by inviting them to create a nature treasure box.
Use an old egg carton and allow them to collect different “treasures” they find in a garden.
It’s a great way to make gardening a family affair!
I shared all of these gardening tips on the TODAY Show a couple of years ago. But if you’d like to check out the segment for yourself, you can find the video HERE.
Happy gardening!
From my home to yours,
Jill
