LANDSCAPING : Spring flowers are showing their full splendor! Before 09h40 (UTC), day flowers: Deadhead early spring bulbs like daffodils and tulips, removing spent blooms while keeping foliage intact to feed next year’s display. / Prepare supports for climbing flowers such as sweet peas and morning glories – bamboo teepees or trellis panels work wonderfully when secured before plants reach 6 inches tall. / Divide overgrown clumps of primroses and polyanthus after flowering, replanting the vigorous outer sections in humus-rich soil.
VEGETABLE PATCH : After 09h40 (UTC), day leaves: The leafy greens season truly begins now! Transplant hardened-off seedlings of kale, Swiss chard, and collards, spacing them 12-18 inches apart depending on variety. / Direct-sow successive batches of lettuce, spinach and arugula in shallow drills 1/4 inch deep, thinning to 6-8 inches as they develop. / A gardening friend taught me to harvest the outer leaves of leafy crops rather than the entire plant – this ‘cut and come again’ approach extends your harvest by weeks.
INDOORS : Houseplants respond well to the increasing daylight hours. Check your indoor herbs like basil, parsley and cilantro – pinch back leggy growth to encourage bushier plants with more leaf production. / Mist leafy tropical plants to increase humidity around their foliage, helping them adjust to the drier indoor spring air. / Rotate potted specimens a quarter turn weekly to prevent one-sided growth as they reach toward spring sunshine.