April Ornamental Gardening...

The Decorative Gardener's Diary - April in the UK garden

The number one priority in April is to sow seeds. Sowing seeds any later than April can cause major problems where floral garden displays are concerned.

April is the time to:

Prepare:

- Fork over borders lightly and add a little compost in preparation for seed sowing

- Mark out flower beds in preparation for planting and sowing

- Collect pea sticks (twiggy sticks) for use with pea seedlings

Sow outdoors:

• Hardy annual seeds
• Grass seed
• Herb seeds

Sow outdoors under cloche:

• Antirrhinums
• Callistephus

Plant:

• Herbaceous perennials
• Evergreen hedges
• Evergreen shrubs & trees
• Waterlillies
• Other aquatic plants
• Alpines
• Pansies
• Violas
• Herb plugs

Prune:

• Established conifers
• Early flowering shrubs (after flowering)

Things to do:


- This is the last chance until October to plant evergreen or coniferous hedges

- If planting evergreen shrubs or trees, make sure that the ground is well prepared beforehand, and use a stake to help the young plants to establish themselves

- Do not mulch herbaceous plants yet - it's too early!

- Protect young shrubs and trees from cold winds if possible

- Cut back straggly, overgrown evergreen shrubs to encourage new growth from the base

- Prune established conifers with secateurs, not shears

- Start dahlia tubers in the greenhouse or in a cold frame outdoors

- Break off dead daffodil heads, and tie stems into a knot to keep them tidy

- Repair bare patches in your lawn, remembering to weed-kill first!

- Established lawns can be mown on a high setting and rolled if desired

- Give pond plants an overall, re-organize and repot if necessary