April 2018
By Scott Canning, Director of Horticulture
Oh my, here we are: Late winter, turning into our precocious, New Mexico “spring”. Procrastinator that I am, I should have given my readers a March to-do list, but…
Lengthening days (especially obvious with the change to daylight savings time) have arrived, and our plants are waking and growing and demanding attention YESTERDAY!!!! We need to rush some chores to completion, and yet not get ahead of ourselves, too. I am SO tempted to sow all of the seeds I swapped with friends and purchased to grow for this brand-new season: Growing plants from seed is one of the most rewarding, exciting, and life-affirming things a human being (gardener!!) can do— but HOLD ON!!! I have sabotaged myself so many times with prematurely-planted seedlings ready for the garden, when my garden was full of frost and not
ready for my seedlings. I caution you to plan well. More on this to come…
Cleanup: Rush this to completion. Your ornamental grasses should be sporting their Parris Island jarhead crew-cut. One severe cut-back at the end of winter is, for almost all ornamental grasses, the only annual requirement. But when they bulk up, threatening a “donut-hole” dead center, they need to be lifted and divided into a new platoon. The divisions need to be properly respected and “trans”-planted into your own garden, or share them with other open-minded gardeners.
Pruning: I hope you took Tracy Neal’s class offered by the Botanical Garden on pruning fruit trees.
If not, do so next year. Although focused on fruit-bearing trees, he does a great job of covering pruning essentials. In the meantime, be sure to have a copy of at least one of the following indispensable guides: “Manual of Woody Landscape Plants” by Michael Dirr, expensive but indispensable to professionals; George E. Brown and Tony Kirkham’s “Essential Pruning Techniques”, or “The Pruning Book: Completely Revised and Updated”, by Lee Reich. All three are great reference works.
Weeding: This is a never-ending chore, but remember that gardening is a way of life, not a finite “to do” list.
Mulching: If your garden is ambitious, find a place for a large mulch pile that can be delivered by truck, just occasionally: Forget the endless plastic bags and schlepping from the retail outlet. Remember that organic mulches stay cooler than gravel or stone, and they feed the soil as they break down.
PIxabay- Antranias
Composting: You are composting, aren’t you? Compost = black gold. If not, study up: Check out this page from Bernalillo County Extension Master Composter Program. Feed your soil with compost and your need for fertilizers is greatly reduced.
Fertilizing: Your best bet here is to do some soil testing and work with your extension service on what your intended plants will need. New Mexico’s labs closed in 2012, but start here at New Mexico State University’s website.
Seed starting: Margaret Roach is my garden seed-starting guru. Check out her website!
