Larry Smith and the Riverside Gardens team talk all things pots, plants and pruning in their weekly gardening column.

It is surprising what a little bit of sunshine and a few minutes of extra daylight can do.

The past week has seen gardeners come out of the woodwork, with the sound of lawnmowers echoing through the neighbourhoods.

The buds on deciduous plants have started to swell, ready to open.

It is a sure sign that spring is on its way.

It was great to see so many people out and about in the garden centre, so eager to get into the garden.

Although the ground is still cold, there are plenty of things that can be done to make the most of the coming growing season.

That includes taking advantage of the last chance to plant out bare-rooted plants into your garden.

Bare-rooted plants are starting to show signs of growth, so in the nurseries, they are now being potted up to be grown on in pots.

Roses are the first to break their dormancy, so they are the first to be potted.

The deciduous fruit trees and ornamental trees will be worked through pretty quickly after that, bringing the bare-rooted season for this year to an end.

As spring approaches, the last of the winter pruning should be completed.

This will allow all the new growth to be where we want it to be to get the best out of the plants.

Plants like Japanese maples can still be left a bit longer — until just before they come into leaf.

Blossom trees such as flowering plums, flowering cherries, crab apples and magnolias should be left until after their floral displays have finished.

The areas of the veggie garden that will be planted up with your summer crops can be dug over now, opening the soil to let it breathe.

You can also incorporate a good compost, old animal manure such as cow or chook manure, and a dressing of organic fertiliser like Blood and Bone.

It may even be beneficial to add a light dressing of lime, if the soil pH allows, before digging it all over.

Then let it rest for a few weeks before planting.

The same can be done to the areas in the garden where you are planning to plant shrubs and flowering seedlings in the coming weeks.

Plants in the garden respond best if they are given a regular feed with an appropriate fertiliser.

I prefer using Blood and Bone or an organic fertiliser such as Neutrog Rapid Raiser.

This is because they not only add the required elements to the soil for plant growth, but they also encourage beneficial microbial activity in the soil and help keep the soil open.

The pushback we often get when suggesting these products is that they smell.

But in all honesty, the smell lasts for only a short while if the fertiliser is applied correctly.

Then you can sit back and see the benefits to the plants over the months to come.

These organic fertilisers, and the element-formulated fertilisers such as Manutec Complete Fertiliser, form the basis of the nutrient requirements needed for plant growth.

The use of liquid fertilisers such as Maxicrop, Seasol, or Fish Emulsion is beneficial throughout the growing season and well worth the effort.

But they are best used as a supplement in conjunction with a good base fertiliser.

By applying fertiliser now, the elements will be present in the soil as the plants start growing in spring to give them the maximum benefit for growth.

These benefits will only come, though, if the soil pH is correct.

Soil pH determines what elements in the soil will dissolve so that the plants can take them up through their roots in the water.

Different elements dissolve at different pH levels, which allows for the right balance of nutrients to be available to the plants that like that pH level.

Most plants prefer a pH of around 6.5, so this is the level that you should be aiming for in the home garden.

Higher or lower levels can see certain nutrients become locked up in the soil or become available in toxic levels, causing stunted, burnt, or poor-looking growth.

If you are unsure of your soil pH, you can purchase an easy-to-use test kit from the nursery or bring in a small sample, and we can test it for you at the counter free of charge.

Other ways to help your garden into spring include scratching over old garden mulches and freshening them up with a new layer.

Re-stake plants that still require support so they are ready for the extra weight of new growth.

Do a quick weed over to remove any winter weeds before they flower and set seed.

Frost damage, in most cases, can be pruned off now because by the time the new growth appears, the frosty weather should be past.

It is probably just a little too early to spray broadleaf weeds in your lawns, but you could feed fescue and rye-type lawns now.

Leave buffalo, couch and kikuyu lawns for two or three weeks’ time.

So, you might have to be a bit patient, but spring is on its way.

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Monday, 29th May 2023

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