Longer days of sunshine mean extra time spent getting your hands dirty, and to make sure you\u2019re getting the most out of your garden this spring, here are a few practical garden tips to keep in mind: \u00a0<\/em>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Tidy up and prune<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Now is the perfect time to grab your shears and loppers and start snipping away old branches, buds or roots. While a great piece of gardening advice is that there\u2019s no such thing as too much pruning, make sure you\u2019re not cutting away early flowering shrubs and anything blooming on old wood, as you could find yourself cutting off this year\u2019s flower buds. Do a little \u201cspring-cleaning\u201d by removing leaves and other debris from flower beds and borders to ensure everything is spick and span for planting. Don’t be too quick to prune less hardy plants that have suffered frost damage, wait until the worst danger of frost has passed.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Clean up the lawn<\/strong><\/p>\n To revive your lawn after winter, start by raking up any debris like leaves, seed pods and twigs and throw it on the compost heap. A thorough raking can prevent lawn thatching, which is when grass grows in a thick clump. This prep work should get your lawn off to a healthy start. However, if your lawn thatch is too thick, I would recommend that you scarify the lawn. Then you can apply a well-balanced lawn fertiliser.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Prepare beds for planting<\/strong><\/p>\n Start by pulling out all spent annuals, cutting back perennials and dividing plants like agapanthus, daylilies and irises. Pull out weeds that have grown through the winter and any other dead plants that the frost got hold of. To help add additional nutrients to your soil and ensure growth, dig in generous amounts of compost to the beds, and add a well-balanced organic fertiliser that will kick-start new plants and give existing ones a boost.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Start planting<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s the moment you’ve been waiting for. After you\u2019ve done preparing your soil, you can start scattering seeds and planting plants. There are so many plants to choose from that will turn your garden into a spring and summer paradise. After planting, add a layer of mulch around the plants. This will help save water, keep the roots cooler during the hot summer months, and prevent diseases and stop weeds from sprouting.<\/p>\n Keep a lookout for early-season pests like aphids, harvester termites and mole crickets. Start treating immediately with the correct insecticide with first signs of these pests, to prevent spreading and minimise damage to plants and lawns. With warmer days ahead start adjusting the watering cycle of the garden as well.<\/p>\n Happy Gardening!<\/strong><\/p>\n Text: Manie Kotz\u00e9\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" As perennials, trees and shrubs emerge from winter dormancy and put on new growth, you may be wondering when to start spring-cleaning your garden. Well, the season of spring garden\u00a0cleaning is upon us! Longer days of sunshine mean extra time spent getting your hands dirty, and to make sure you\u2019re getting the most out of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":103,"featured_media":18151,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3679],"tags":[160,7317,642,7316],"class_list":{"0":"post-18150","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-gardening","8":"tag-garden","9":"tag-manie-kotze","10":"tag-spring","11":"tag-spring-cleaning-your-garden"},"yoast_head":"\n