Spring is the time to get outdoors and freshen up the garden with new plantings and completing a few maintenance jobs. Photo: File
WITH the weather warming up now is the time to start pottering outdoors to complete a few easy jobs that will have your garden looking in tip-top shape throughout spring and into summer.
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A must-do job, says Bunnings national garden care buyer David Hardie is removing the weeds from garden beds and the lawn. This will help plants recover from winter and get the garden back into shape during spring to encourage healthy growth and a strong planting season, Hardie says. Here's Hardie's top tips on how to keep the garden looking fresh in spring.
- Encourage kids to start a compost bin in the garden to recycle organic garden and kitchen waste into a highly nutritious soil conditioner.
- Remove new and emerging weeds from the garden by hand or with a hoe. Target stronger weeds with herbicide treatments that won’t damage flowers and plants.
- Prune fruit trees in early spring before new fruit develops to encourage healthy growth and make it easier to harvest produce. Pruning trees will also help minimise pests and diseases.
- Prepare the soil and plant seeds in early spring to allow them to grow to maturity as early as possible. Fertilise the seeds to give them plenty of food for growth.
- Give new life to garden tools by cleaning them with disinfectant or investing in new tools to last the season.
- Spring is an ideal time to plant vegetables such as carrots, tomatoes and cucumbers to ensure a bountiful crop for your summer salads.
- Maintaining the lawn in spring will allow it to grow lush and green come summer. Aerate the soil to allow the lawn to breathe. Tackle weeds early and sprinkle fertiliser over the soil to ensure a strong lawn is grown.
- Repot container-grown plants that have outgrown their current pot. Place them into larger pots with fresh potting mix or trim the roots of the plant and replant them into their existing pot with fresh potting mix.
- Maintain water features and clean out accumulated rubbish and leaves that may have built up over winter. Re-pot water plants before returning them to ponds to give them a healthy new environment.
marina.williams@farifaxmedia.com.au