Monthly Advice For April

 

Seedlings

Re-pot seedlings you have sewn in the last few weeks into a quality multipurpose compost. This will encourage the plants to grow and give them a stronger root development.

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Summer Colour

To give your garden a colourful display throughout the summer, now is the time to plant your baskets and tubs. Try using Fuchsia, Geranium and Surfinia Petunias to name a few.

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Evergreens

April is now a good time to plant evergreen shrubs, bamboos and conifers. You will need to water them in well and mulch the root area with bark or compost.

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Slugs & Snails

Watch out for damage from slugs and snails. All those new shoots provide a succulent meal for these pesky garden inhabitants!

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Rose Pruning

Now is the time to hard prune your roses. Remove any dead wood and always cut with a angled cut away from the bud. Finish by feeding and you will reap the benefits later in the year.

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Protect Your Blossom

If the weather has not improved and frost has been forecast, spread fleece or even bubble wrap over any flowering fruit trees and bushes, this will protect the blossom.

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In the Greenhouse

Now is the time to sow marrows, courgettes and sweetcorn for planting out later. Towards the end of the month you can start to plant tomatoes in unheated greenhouses.

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Pondlife

If you are lucky enough to have tadpoles turn up in your pond, make sure they have clumps of pondweed to give them shelter from your marauding goldfish.