Your garden in April
Spring should be well under way this month with daffodils in full flow, their bright flowers enough to cheer up any day. Blossom trees will be blooming and fresh growth will be appearing on plants everywhere. “April showers’ are common but don’t be deceived by sudden burst of rainfall – you may need to start watering plants more regularly on dry, bright and windy days. With longer days and stronger sunshine growing conditions are continually improving and the warmer weather will give us all the opportunity to get busy in our gardens.
Sow hardy annuals
Hardy annuals are plants that can be sown from seed in the open ground. Get them off to an early start by sowing in pots or modules. Modular trays are also handy for sowing summer bedding plants such as marigolds, lobelia and petunias. Label each seed tray and once they are growing put them outside when the weather is warm day and night. 36
Support climbers
Climbing plants should be growing rapidly now, so will need ample support for new growth. Extend or replace trellis as necessary or add more wire to archers and tripods. New shoots will need to be gently encouraged sideways as they grow. This will send vital growth hormones doing the length of the shoot rather than just to the tip and so will encourage flowering all over the plant.
