April

April 20, 2011

APRIL is the cruellest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and desire, stirring
Dull roots with spring rain.
-T.S. Eliot

Or stirring dull roots with spring snow. We keep reminding ourselves that it (spring) will come eventually. We are all cranky with the waiting. The garden is wet, partially uncovered and barely planted, but let's go out there anyway, and see what's to be done.

A few tasks for late April, for those of you who didn't get to it in early April: Start slowly raking the leaves off the perennial beds.  As always, mellow and slow with this job, there are tiny heads poking up all over the place, best not to rip them off before they've had a chance to look around.

Spread a fresh layer of compost or Cowsmo on your vegetable garden, raised bed and/or perennial beds.   If you haven't planted onions, leeks, chives, etc., go for it. Potatoes can go in, along with lettuce (direct seeding), spinach and kale. We will have kale, chinese broccoli, asparagus, lots of herbs and many cold tolerant annuals this weekend at the store.

I'll admit, I have been remiss in pulling the crunchy winter greens out of my pots and window box.  You too?  Forgive yourself and yank it out.  Potting soil should be replenished (yes yearly) if you want nice blooming - high quality soils mean good drainage and healthy plants.  Try some different spring annuals, like arctotis or nemesia. Or just stick with pansies, everyone loves them.  While you are in a potting mood, consider planting summer bulbs like lilies, canna and elephant ear in pots inside to give them a jumpstart for transplant into the garden after the soil is nice and warm.

April is the month for corn gluten - this weekend would probably be perfect after this big chill.

The long-winded details about this process can be gotten at the store. We are selling native Mason Bees and nesting tubes for improved pollination and red wigglers for vermicomposting. Get going on your outdoor compost - all those rotty bags of leaves behind the garage are just perfect for mixing with kitchen waste. We have compostable plastic and paper yard bags for cleanup, as well as pop ups, gloves, rakes, clippers and lots of other great tools, including more USA made tools than ever.

Everything is running a little late this year, but major deliveries are scheduled for this week and next, so come see us.

Plastic pot recycling starts April 20. Please help us keep this program alive by cleaning and stacking your pots, no rocks, wire, staples, THANKS!