Now that third winter has come and gone and temperatures are looking to be heading back into the 60s and 70s next week, it’s time to turn your focus from the snow boots and car scrapers, to getting your garden in order for the warmer weather *fingers crossed that should be headed our way for the rest of the year.
1. Decorate your Home With Hanging Baskets
Add a pop of color to your porch, patio, and back decks with some flowering hanging baskets. Common flower baskets consist of geraniums, verbena, petunia, bidens, or other flowers. Hanging baskets require minimal care, just water them daily and they should be able to cope with the Buffalo seasons. Consider removing faded or dead flowers to encourage the development of new blooms! Make sure to bring these beauties in if there’s frost in the forecast!
2. Get Tropical
Okay, maybe don’t head to the tropics just yet, but while the world is returning to business as usual, consider planting a paradise in your backyard! Beautiful tropical plants such as the hibiscus, variegated ginger, canna, bird of paradise, palm, and ti plant have been known to thrive as far north as Canada and Minnesota during the summer. Just make sure to keep these plants potted so they can be moved indoors if there is a frost threat!
3. Get Your Tomatoes Going
Look to start your Tomatoes inside in early May, but until nightly temperatures start to get closer to 50 than 30, it’s best to keep them inside. Tomatoes grow best when nightly temperatures are above 50 degrees.
4. Throw in a Pinch of Spice
When the danger of frost (or fourth-winter here in Western New York) subsides later in May, it should be safe to leave your basil, dill, rosemary, cilantro and fennel outside at night. Until then, keep them in containers that you’re able to easily bring inside. Keep in mind, these herbs do best with at least 6 to 8 hours of sunlight a day and well-drained soil that won’t remain muddy from the May showers we will undoubtedly get.
5. Bring On the Bulbs
While a lot of the tulips daffodils and other spring-flowering bulbs have finished for the year, make sure to clip away the dead flower stalks but leave the foliage until it dries out naturally. This should help the plant to stay healthy until next year. In the meantime, it’s a great opportunity to plant summer flowering bulbs around mid-May when the frost danger has cleared. Some great summer bulbs are dahlia, tuberous begonia, and caladium. These can all be planted in containers until the outdoors become more suitable!
6. Hide That Eyesore
If there’s a corner of your yard marred by a rickety fence, dilapidated garage, or any other structure common in the city of Buffalo, consider planting vines to help mask your view. Many vines are fast-growing and can be started from seeds planted directly in your garden. Annual vines like, morning glory, hyacinth bean, and cypress vine all fit the bill, just keep in mind that some vines require regular pruning to keep them in check, and always avoid planting them near your house so that you avoid them growing out of control!
7. Make Some Butterfly Friends
By planting flowers that butterflies love, such as coneflower, butterfly bush, and dianthus, you’ll ensure that your yard is visited by a variety of colorful butterflies! By adding plants that caterpillars enjoy, like dill, parsley, and fennel you’ll ensure that you’ll have plenty of these beauties around your Western New York Yard.
8. Get Mulching
The best way to get keep your garden weed-free is to mulch it regularly. Some of the best ways to keep your garden healthy are to mulch using compost, grass clipping, straw, and even newspaper. A good mulch will help preserve moisture once it gets hotter in the summer, keeps weeds from growing out of control, and add organic matter to your soil as it decays.
Don’t forget to ask for help!
If you’re in Western New York and have a project beyond a backyard garden, or just want some real help getting it started, CGS Lawn and Co. will help you beautify your yard!
Contact us today and we’ll help to make your yard a paradise!