Your Spring Gardening Checklist

As the winter frost retreats and the California sun warms the Bay Area, gardeners look to their landscapes with renewed energy. Spring is a critical transition period—a time to mend the wear of winter and lay the foundation for a lush, productive summer. This Spring Gardening Checklist from LYNGSØ will help you prioritize tasks for a healthy, prolific sustainable landscape.

1. Refresh the Foundation: Soil and Mulch

The health of your garden begins underground. Your soil is alive and now is the time to replenish vital nutrients to help build healthy soil microbiome.

• Amend the Soil: Spread one inch of high-quality organic compost like Diestel Structured Compost or your own home compost to your garden. Aerobic compost will supply much needed organic nutrients to your soil.
• Recharge Raised Beds: Top off existing raised beds with one to two inches of Vegetable Amendment Mix and add in any other crop specific fertilizers as needed. For generic organic fertilizer, use Down to Earth’s Bio-Live. For new raised beds, fill with nutrient rich Essential Soil or Lyngso Vegetable Blend.
• Mulch for Moisture: Apply or reapply a fresh layer of mulch around trees, shrubs, and perennials. Mulch help keep weeds down, preserve moisture, and protect your soil. It is most beneficial to keep fallen leaf litter under the canopy of trees like Oaks and Conifers (Redwoods, Firs) and tread lightly.

2. Prune and Organize

Spring cleaning isn’t just for the indoors. It’s time to tidy up the structural elements of your garden and clear away dead branches and winter debris.

• Prune with Purpose: Cut back dried foliage and prune trees and shrubs to encourage healthy new growth. For herbaceous perennials like salvia, a mid-spring prune helps promote a bushier, more robust habit. If possible, chip the healthy downed branches and leaf litter to use as a soil mulch cover or add to your home compost pile.
• Divide Perennials: Early spring is the ideal time to divide overcrowded perennials. This not only invigorates the parent plant but gives you “free” plants to expand your garden or share with neighbors.
• Chop and Drop Cover Crops: If you planted winter cover crops, such as fava beans, rye, or clover, get ready to chop and drop before they bloom. This ensures the maximum return of nitrogen to the soil before they go to seed.

3. Smart Watering

With California’s unpredictable state of drought, water management is paramount!

• Check Irrigation: Turn your irrigation system back on and inspect for leaks thoroughly. Replace broken sprinkler heads, clean out clogs, and ensure your timers and watering zones are set correctly for the spring season.
• Water Early: Always aim to water early in the morning. This prevents wet foliage at night, which can attract unwanted pests or lead to fungal diseases like root rot.
• Ponds and Fountains: Clean your water features in preparation for algae blooms when the sun is shining. Add doses of beneficial bacteria, natural detoxifier or scale treatment for clear and scale-free water features.

4. Plant for Color and Flavor

Once the ground is no longer cold and the soil has been prepped, the fun of functional and aesthetic planting begins.

• Edibles: Transplant tomato seedlings and sow seeds for summer favorites like zucchini, cucumbers, beans, corn, and melons. Be sure to plant according to your USDA Plant Hardiness Zone.
• Pollinator Support: Create a wildlife habitat by planting native species in clusters. Asters, cosmos, sages, and sunflowers are excellent choices to attract bees and butterflies. If possible, provide water and shelter for beneficials to thrive.
• Summer Blooms: Plant gladiolus and dahlia bulbs now to ensure a vibrant explosion of color in the coming months. For container gardens, plant bulbs in Potting Mix.

5. Natural Pest Management

As your garden wakes up, so do the pests.

• Manual Removal: Keep an eye out for snails, slugs, and aphids. Removing them by hand is safer for the ecosystem than toxic pesticides.
• Beneficial Insects: Incorporate best Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices and encourage “good bugs” to help control mite, whitefly, and aphid populations naturally.

By following this checklist, you aren’t just cleaning up—you are actively participating in a sustainable cycle that supports local biodiversity and ensures a bountiful harvest. For more detailed guides and free classes, visit the LYNGSØ’s Community Resources page.

LYNGSØ, an employee-owned company, is the exclusive garden materials retailer providing landscape gardening articles in Atherton Living. Explore landscaping resources at lyngsogarden.com.