The tomatoes and flowering hanging baskets are well on their way, perennials, trees and shrubs are being planted along with bedding plants, and every day there are new products arriving.

 

The dahlias, and other summer bulbs and tubers are in the store, and ready to be planted now, so that by the time they are ready to go outdoors you will have a well established plant. Planting these early is well worth the effort because our Prince George season is so short that you want to be able to enjoy the plants as much as possible.

 

If you wait until May to plant the dahlia tuber outside, it will take until July for it to bloom and by then half of the season has passed. I recommend using peat or fibre pots when planting, especially if you plan on transplanting at a later date. This is because then you can transplant the grown plant into the garden or another pot without having to take it out of the pot causing less stress on the plant and you.

 

When starting any plant indoors including tubers, bulbs etc make sure that the plant receives lots of uniform light, the right fertilizer for that growing stage, and don't keep plants too warm as you want to have strong stocky plants.

 

Have you pinched your plants lately?

 

Pinching is a form of pruning to create compact bushy plants. At the greenhouse we pinch back certain perennials, dahlias, and most of the flowering plants, herbs, and even houseplants. By pinching out the tip of the main stem it forces the plant to create two new stems giving it twice as many stems making it a much fuller plant. You can use your fingers to pinch out the grow tip or a pair of sharp scissors or pruners.

 

Pinch just above the leaf nodes because the new stems will come from the leaf nodes just below the pinch and so you do not want to have a piece of stem sticking out. Keeping in mind that the new stems will come from the nodes just below the pinch you want to leave at least two leaf nodes on the plant after it has been pinched other wise there is no place for the branching to occur.

 

It might be too early to do a lot of the yard work but it is never too early to plan and get ready.

 

Take out the pictures and notes from last year and see what you want to change or keep the same. Go for a walk outside and check out the landscape and see what needs to be done. If you had any problems last year they should be taken care of as soon as possible, and if you are not sure what to do then this is a good time to ask a knowledgeable person who can help you.

 

Already the aisles around the seed racks are getting busier as gardeners are choosing seeds so that they will be ready to plant when the time comes and also they won't be disappointed with sold out varieties.

 

Spring is well on its way with the first signs of bulbs and perennials beginning to show some green. I have noticed that the Canadian Geese, robins and other birds are also coming back from the south, so its time to get ready and grow!