You must have heard of the phrase “Time heals everything”. Well, along with time, there is another factor that helps you to heal emotionally. That factor is none other than nature. When you spend time in nature, you experience a surge in pleasant emotions and a reduction in unpleasant emotions.
Therefore, you must spend as much time as possible in nature every day. You might think that it’s not possible for you to do so, as you remain occupied throughout the day. Just like millions of people in the world, you might also be struggling to fulfil personal and professional responsibilities.
Moreover, the continual infrastructural development has led to the presence of tall structures everywhere, thereby leaving minimum space for the existence of natural elements. Most people see a glimpse of trees, plants, flowers, lakes, and other elements of nature only while commuting. Australians are known for their love of outdoor living areas. Almost every independent residential property in Australia has at least one outdoor living space.
However, many gardens and backyards (having flora) are not maintained well, either due to lack of time or lack of expertise. If you have a garden or any other outdoor area (where you grow plants and trees) within your premises, you should maintain it properly.
Spring or springtime is the best time when it comes to the growth of flora. Spring comes after winter and before summer. Trees and plants need sunlight to make food, which in turn helps them to grow. They get more sunlight in spring compared to winter. So, they sprout new leaves and bloom flowers. The spring season gives you a chance to make your garden look like never before. We have mentioned some important tips on how to prep a garden for spring and what you can grow in spring.
Read These Spring Gardening Ideas and Spring Garden Care Tips
The spring season has great significance not just in terms of vegetation but also in terms of human life. It is associated with positive emotions like happiness, joy, and rejuvenation. The onset of springtime is celebrated in some cultures. The major reason behind the same is that trees and plants begin to grow again during the spring season.
If you are not happy with how your garden looks, you can change its look by caring for it in the springtime. The spring season creates ideal conditions for trees and plants. If you carry out the necessary steps, the flora in your garden can flourish like never before. We have shed light on important points like “what to plant in spring garden?”, “what to do in the garden in spring?” and “gardening tips for spring”. Please continue reading to learn more.
What You Can Grow in Spring in Your Lovely Garden?
Springtime is the perfect time for new plants as they grow rapidly owing to the abundant sunlight and pleasant weather. Therefore, you get a chance to plant new vegetables, fruits, herbs, shrubs, and much more. You must make the preparations before the beginning of the spring season.
You can start by listing down the plants that you want to grow. Then, you can make a list of all the essential supplies that you will need to start planting. We realize the fact that you are not a professional gardener. So, it would not be wrong to say that you might also have to gather some information on how to plant seedlings of a particular plant.
If you are wondering, “what can I plant in early spring in Australia?”, worry not, as we have shared useful information on what vegetables grow well in spring. We have also answered the question “when to start spring gardening?”, which is one of the most common questions that beginners in the gardening encounter.
Vegetables for Temperate Regions
You can plant a wide variety of vegetables in your garden if you are living in regions that have a temperate climate. These vegetables include but are not limited to capsicum, beetroot, Chinese cabbage, lettuce, zucchini, potato, onion, sweet potato, spring onion, sweet corn, eggplant, and radish.
Vegetables for Mediterranean Regions
If you are living in a city or suburb that experienced a Mediterranean climate, you can grow some extremely nutritious vegetables in your garden. A few examples include lettuce, spinach, zucchini, broccoli, cucumber, sweet corn, tomato, and carrot.
Vegetables for Tropical Wet/Dry Regions
Some regions in Australia have a tropical savanna climate, i.e., the tropical wet and dry climate. If you are living in any of these regions, you can grow vegetables like corn, onion, radish, spinach, pumpkin, capsicum, French beans, sweet potato, eggplant, and beetroot in your garden.
When it comes to “what spring vegetables to grow?”, you must know that the list mentioned above is not exhaustive. You can grow many other types of vegetables as well depending on the climate in your region, soil quality in your garden, and other relevant factors. You can even grow fruits and herbs.
It’s worth mentioning here that we have mentioned ‘tomato’ in the aforementioned list but tomato is a fruit and not a vegetable. You can grow strawberries, blueberries, watermelons, and dwarf apples. You can even grow herbs, such as coriander, mint, parsley, basil, ginger, oregano, dill, chives, and thyme.
What is the Best Time for Early Spring Gardening?
Plants grow well during the spring season, and so, you should sow new plants before the onset of spring. However, many people remain confused about the exact time when they should sow seeds. Usually, it’s recommended to start spring gardening in late March or early April.
But if you are reading this blog post during the spring season, you might start thinking that it’s already too late. However, that’s not the case, as springtime offers you a great opportunity to make your garden look beautiful. Even if the spring season has already started, you can still sow plants that you want in your garden. All you need is dedication and patience.
If it’s not the spring season, then you can plan well in advance for growing your favourite vegetables, fruits, herbs, flowers, and more in the next spring season. Another point that home gardeners should know about spring gardening is that you can sow seeds in small and medium-sized planters that can be kept indoors. You can keep these planters indoors before for four to six weeks before planting them outside.
How to Prepare a Garden for Spring Planting?
As promised earlier in this blog post, we have shared some early spring gardening tips and spring garden care tips. These tips will help you to understand how to start spring gardening and how to take care of the plants you have sown so that you can enjoy the sweet fruits (and nutritional vegetables) of your hard efforts.
Clean Up Your Garden
Whether you sow new plants directly in your garden and bring them into the garden after keeping them indoors for a few weeks, it’s important that your garden is pristinely clean. Gardens tend to get dirty during the autumn and winter seasons.
Hence, the first step toward preparing your garden for spring planting is to clean up your garden. You should remove the dried leaves fallen on the ground. You also need to remove dead plants and tree branches that might have fallen on the ground.
Get Ready for Pruning and Raking
One of the most important early spring planting tips is to clear away broken or diseased plants and trees. You also need to get rid of uneven grass patches and brown grass in your garden. Therefore, you must get ready to conduct pruning, raking, and other tasks necessary to keep your garden healthy. You should prune the dead, broken, diseased, and damaged branches of trees by using the right equipment.
If left unattended, these branches can fall on the ground, and thereby, lead to injuries. Dead branches can also lead to pest infestations. You have to rake your garden to get rid of brown grass. If you don’t have the equipment to bring your garden to a clean and well-maintained state, you can always get it on hire.
It’s Time to Weed, Plant, and Mulch
Once you are done with cleaning, pruning, and raking your garden, it’s time to carry out the next steps. These steps include weeding, planting, and mulching. The word ‘weed’ is not unknown to anyone. Weeds are unwanted plants that grow in the ground. If you are wondering, “how to prepare garden beds for spring planting?”, let us tell you that the first step is to remove the weeds. The process conducted to remove the weeds is known as weeding.
Most people get confused about whether to mulch first or plant first. The correct answer to this is that you should plant new seeds first and then mulch. The term ‘mulching’ refers to the process of spreading some material on the surface of the soil. The material generally used as a mulch includes grass cuttings, leaves, dry grass, and wood chips. A mulch acts as a covering and provides various benefits for your garden, such as improving fertility, conserving moisture, and reducing weed growth.
Sprinkle Pesticides and Fertilisers
A spring gardening checklist is incomplete without sprinkling pesticides and fertilizers in your garden. Pests are the worst enemies of trees and plants. If you have had dead plants or tree branches in your garden for a long time, it’s quite possible that they would have attracted pests. Removing such dead branches and plants is not enough.
You should take the necessary measures for pest control in your garden. We are aware of the fact that pesticides have quite a bad reputation due to the harmful chemicals present inside them. But worry not, as you can always opt for pesticides that are made with organic substances. You can even use homemade pesticides.
Fertilising your garden is of utmost importance during the springtime. Fertilisers contain nutrients that promote the growth of plants. You can also protect the trees and plants in your garden from diseases with the help of fertilisers.
Water Your Plants Regularly
One of the most neglected spring gardening basics is watering the plants. Many people sow seeds and spread mulch on the soil, but forget to take care of newly sown plants. You must water the plants in your garden regularly.
Merely pouring water over the plants is not enough when it comes to watering the plants in the right way. You must ensure that the water reaches the roots of the plants. Therefore, it’s necessary to choose the best watering equipment and techniques.
Now that you know what spring vegetables to grow, when is early spring gardening supposed to be done, and how to take care of your garden in spring, we are sure that you will put your best foot forward. However, in the midst of planting, mulching, watering, and other activities, remember to have fun. Gardening is meant to make you feel calm, happy, and contended. You should not be stressed while gardening.
A healthy, clean, and beautiful garden can enhance the overall visual appeal of your property. As we have mentioned at the beginning of this blog post, spending some time in nature can provide numerous benefits to you. Even if you spend just half an hour in your garden, you will experience a significant boost in your mood and energy levels. You should create suitable seating spaces in your garden and keep outdoor furniture in those spaces.
Final Thoughts
If you don’t mind spending money, you can add elements like water features and fire features to your garden. Fountains, ponds, and waterfalls are some of the water features that can enhance the appearance of your garden. If you want to make your garden look cosy, you can opt for fire features, such as fire pits, fire tables, and fire bowls.