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April Garden: Central Texas

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picture of flower

Tip #1

Feed your plants.

March and April are the best months to fertilize your lawn, as well as established trees, shrubs, and other plants for spring. Spray the landscape with seaweed solution in the morning or evening up to once a week. Also use seaweed solution to water in new transplants to help relieve transplant shock and stimulate rooting.

image of an apple tree
image of an apple tree
image of a cloud
image of the sun
image of anotehr cloud

Tip #2

Feed your soil.

It’s important to feed your plants, but also, to feed your soil! Using a liquid soil activator is a great way to improve microbial activity and soil structure. If you haven’t done so yet, topdress your lawn, flower beds, and gardens with compost.

image of dirt
image of dirt

Tip #3

Cover bare soil.

For the health of your soil, and to prevent weeds, keep your soil covered at all times with plants or compost and mulch. Bare soil invites weeds. Consider planting summer cover crops, such as buckwheat or black-eyed peas, in fallow areas. Add compost, then mulch, to other bare soil areas. An inch or two of compost, and two or three inches of mulch is needed to get the benefits of weed suppression and moisture retention. Other benefits include cooler, looser, more fertile soil.

a tarp covering a dirt pile
a tarp covering a dirt pile

Next:

Pests

Caterpillars

There are little caterpillars that dangle in great numbers from the oak trees each spring. To save our oaks and plants from defoliation, B.t. or Bacillus thuringensis is a natural solution for caterpillars only. Organic pest control means being as specific as possible, and only target the culprit pests to leave the beneficial insects to do their work. Apply according to package directions to the leaves of your oak trees and the underlying plants. B.t. works on all caterpillars (keep it away from your butterfly garden!) including the Genista which feed on the Texas mountain laurel, and tomato hornworms. If you want to avoid spraying altogether next year, mark your calendar to release Trichogramma wasps in January or February. These tiny, non-stinging wasps parasitize the eggs of these caterpillars as well as several other pests.

a big tree
caterpillar inching across the screen

Monitor your plants for insects

Aphids, thrips, whiteflies, stink bugs, and their ilk are best controlled early on, when they’re nymphs or larvae, using the least toxic solution. Correct identification of the bug is the first step, check out a Pest Control Guide for more help.

grass
a fly flying across the screen
snow on the screen

And Lastly, Watch Out For Final Cold Snaps.

The Hill Country gets freezes as late as Easter some years, so stay prepared!

Up Next:

April Planting Guide

Early April

Seeds

  • Beets
  • Beans
  • Corn
  • Cucumber
  • Okra
  • Peas, Southern
  • Pumpkin
  • Summer Squash
  • Winter Squash
  • Watermelon

Mid April

Seeds

  • Beets
  • Beans
  • Corn
  • Cucumber
  • Okra
  • Peas, Southern
  • Pumpkin
  • Summer Squash
  • Winter Squash
  • Watermelon

Late April

Seeds

  • Beans
  • Cucumber
  • Okra
  • Peas, Southern
  • Pumpkin
  • Summer Squash
  • Winter Squash
  • Watermelon
seedling

Early April

Mid April

Late April

Seeds:

  • Beets
  • Beans
  • Corn
  • Cucumber
  • Okra
  • Peas, Southern
  • Pumpkin
  • Summer Squash
  • Winter Squash
  • Watermelon

Transplants:

  • Eggplant
  • Peppers
  • Tomatoes

Seeds:

  • Beans
  • Corn
  • Cucumber
  • Okra
  • Peas, Southern
  • Pumpkin
  • Summer Squash
  • Winter Squash
  • Watermelon

Transplants:

  • Eggplant
  • Peppers
  • Tomatoes

Seeds:

  • Beans
  • Cucumber
  • Okra
  • Peas, Southern
  • Pumpkin
  • Summer Squash
  • Winter Squash
  • Watermelon

Transplants:

  • Eggplant
  • Peppers
  • Sweet Potatoes

The End

Skrollr is really hard.