Spring Vegetable Gardening Tips

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     Spring vegetable gardening is easy when garden preparation is a year-round endeavor. By choosing the correct vegetables to grow and getting an early start, every spring gardener can harvest fresh, delicious cool season vegetables before the end of spring. Winter is the best time to prepare for spring gardening, according to garden expert P. Allen Smith.

   Keep Soil Healthy

   • Healthy soil is extremely important to spring vegetable gardening. Natural composts---such as those made from leaves---keep soil healthy, according to Ed Shortes of the University of California at Davis. Begin compost piles in late fall with autumn leaf litter. Cover the compost pile to keep moisture out if it begins to smell, as compost smell is an indication of excessive water. In early spring, uncover the compost layer and incorporate it into the upper 6 inches of soil to promote nutrient development and soil aggregation.

   Choose the Right Vegetables

   • Choices abound for spring vegetable gardens, reports P. Allen Smith. Lettuce, snow peas, arugula, beets, cabbage and kohlrabi are all cool season vegetables, and will satisfy most any discerning grower. Leftover seeds are not a problem, as several cool season vegetables can be grown through the fall months, too.

   Start Indoors

   • Most cool season vegetables are easily started indoors. Kale, cabbage and rape, for example, can be started indoors from seed six to eight weeks before your area's frost-free date. Seedlings sprouting under 12- or 24-hour light will have a nice head start in growth. Some cool season vegetables---for example, most root vegetables---are even able to survive outside for up to two weeks before your last frost date.

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Planting Spring Gardens: Early Start

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Early Spring Vegetable Gardening

 

Early spring combines the reality of getting back into the garden with cool season vegetables like peas, radishes and lettuce. These crops thrive in the cooler temperatures of early spring and even like having some frost that can go along with it.

1. Peas

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     Whether you're planting garden peas, snow peas or snap peas, early spring is the right time to get these seeds in the ground. The time to plant is as early as possible depending on when the soil is loose enough to be worked. Soak pea seeds overnight to soften their hard exterior and aid germination.

   Radishes

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     Radishes should be a part of your early spring garden. Like peas, radish seeds can be planted as soon as the soil can be worked and certainly not later than late March or early April. Since most varieties mature in just 20 to 30 days, you can do repeat plantings of seed every seven days or so. By late spring, radish plants bolt due to higher temperatures.

   Lettuce

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     Lettuce is a mainstay in salads and can be planted in early spring for fresh leaves any time you want them. More than one variety may be planted at a time. Lettuce is heat sensitive and will bolt by early summer.

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Annual Flower Fertilizer

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The Best Fertilizers for Helping Blooms

1. • Fertilizers are a prime requirement of plants to help them grow vigorously. Fertilizers add the essential nutrients to the soil and come in either natural or synthetic form. All plants, flowering or non-flowering, have specific growth requirements such as the correct soil pH and adequate nutrients, which are best evaluated through soil tests. Nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium are the major plant nutrients. Out of these, phosphorus is most important for the development of flowers.

   Monster Bloom Fertilizer

   • Monster Bloom is a fertilizer product of the Grotek company designed specifically to help grow vigorous blooms. The fertilizer contains the essential nutrients in the ratio of 0-50-30. The fertilizer helps plants to start producing the most flowers in the middle of the flowering season. Monster Bloom contains a very high level of phosphorus, which plays a critical role in plant metabolism. The potassium in the fertilizer supports the growth of flowers and fruits and leads to optimal photosynthesis and starch production. It is recommended to stop using Monster Bloom two weeks before the end of the flowering cycle.

   Tiger Bloom Fertilizer

   • Tiger Bloom is a high phosphorus fertilizer for helping to create prolific blooms and large sized buds. The fertilizer contains the essential nutrients in the ratio of 2-8-4. Beside the essential nutrients, Tiger Bloom also contains many trace minerals such as calcium, magnesium and manganese. The fertilizer promotes abundant fruit in fruit bearing plants as well. Apply to plants when flowers first start to appear and use all the way to final harvest and flowering stage. Tiger Bloom fertilizer is recommended for use for in soils and in hydroponic gardening.

   Happy Frog Fruit & Flower Fertilizer

   • Happy Frog Fruit & Flower Fertilizer is manufactured by the Fox Farm company. The fertilizer contains the essential nutrients in the ratio of 5-8-4. The high level of phosphorus in the fertilizer supports optimal fruit and flower growth in plants. The use of Happy Frog Fruit & Flower Fertilizer leads to the development of healthy root systems in the plants and vigorous branching. The fertilizer also contains humic acid and mycorrhizae. The recommended amount of fertilizer use is 1 tbsp. in every gallon of soil.

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The Best Fertilizer for Asiatic Lilies

Lilies are ornamental plants, known by gardeners as low-maintenance, easy-to-grow, decorative flowers that add color and aesthetic quality to a garden or other landscaped area. Their low-maintenance reputation does not mean lilies thrive on neglect. A carefully designed fertilization schedule brings lilies to full health and vigor. Consider fertilizer choices in light of the exact type of lilies you are growing. Asiatic lilies, for example, respond well to a specifically designed fertilization schedule.

1. Asiatic Lilies

   • All lilies have a well-earned reputation as easy plants to grow, and Asiatic lilies are among the easiest of all lilies to grow. Along with the similar Oriental lilies, Asiatic lilies are hardy and are highly adaptable to a range of soil profiles, so long as the soil is well draining. Asiatic lilies usually grow to 2 to 5 feet tall at full maturity and bloom in a variety of colors, such as yellow, pink, deep pink, orange and cream. Asiatics are among the most commonly grown types of lilies by home gardeners.

   Fertilization for Lilies

   • Lilies tolerate many different soil types and its fertilization needs are often marginal. Have your soil tested by a local university extension office and add fertilizers as needed to supplement nutrients your soil lacks. In general, a once-per-season application of a phosphorus-rich fertilizer, such as 5--10--10 or similar formulation, applied in the spring improves lily growth. Slow-release fertilizers yield more consistent results than do quick-release formulations.

   Asiatics and Fertilization

   • The specific fertilization needs of Asiatic lilies do not differ from the general fertilization requirements for all lilies. Asiatics' well-known ability to adapt to many different soils could mean they require even less fertilization. So long as your soil is not critically deficient in important plant nutrients, such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and others, you can grow Asiatic lilies with minimal fertilization. It is always a good idea to inquire a nursery or local university extension office about the fertilization needs of the specific species of Asiatic lilies that you purchase for cultivation.

   Other Considerations

   • Despite their hardiness and vigor, lilies are susceptible to problems associated with overfertilization. Gardeners sometimes mistakenly associate fertilizer with plant food and haphazardly add too much of it to their plants. Fertilizer is not plant food and should be used as sparingly as is possible. Always follow manufacturer's labeled application instructions to avoid harming your plants by overfertilization.

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How to Best Fertilize Flowers

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