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Pre-Spring Gardening Checklist

Winter’s not over yet, but we’re ready to get out into the garden! We’ve put together an easy list of the gardening you can do now on those hopeful days when the sun peeks out from the clouds.

• Clean your annual and perennial flower beds. Add compost to the soil and add more mulch to the beds.
• Deadhead flowers, such as pansies.
• Put down mulch across all garden beds to control weeds.
• Fertilize spring-blooming bulbs.
• Finish planting shrubs and trees. Fertilize.
• Fertilize established fruit trees.
• Prune dormant trees. Avoid pruning citrus until the spring.
• Prune shrubs now; wait to prune spring-flowering shrubs until after they bloom.
• Fertilize established fruit trees. Continue planting dormant fruit trees.
• Start your indoor seed boxes of tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and cauliflower indoors.
• Prune roses to remove damaged canes. Then fertilize and apply mulch for protection.
• Divide and transplant perennial herbs.
• Seed herbs for April planting.
• You can fertilize your houseplants with a water-soluble fertilizer when they show new growth.
• Regularly mow your lawn at recommended heights (St. Augustine and Bahia: 3 to 4 inches; Centipede: 1.5 to 2 inches; Dwarf St. Augustine: 2.5 inches).

While the Southeast and Southwest are getting ready to say their final goodbyes to winter, northern regions have a little longer to wait. The best planting times are determined by region, so if you’re looking for more info on when you can start planting, check out a guide like the Farmer’s Almanac Planting Calendar.