By DAVE LOTT
University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension
Warmer weather and longer days are starting to show up, giving so many of us hope and excitement for the new growing season. Even though it is very tempting to start yard and garden work to clean up from the winter, we need to beware of "False Spring", where the warm days can be followed by cold snaps and potential spring blizzards that will visit the region at some point in March and April.
Cleaning up flower beds, gardens, and early lawn mowing will remove protective dead plant materials that help serve as an insulating buffer from the continued cold snaps that will probably show up in the next month or so. Tender plant material that is exposed to the cold weather can cause damage that can weaken or even kill plant material. Here are some tips to consider now, and through mid-April on gardening related jobs in our very uncertain weather.
- Now is a great time to sharpen lawn mower blades and service mower engines so they are good working order for when the mowing begins for the growing season.
- Do not mow bluegrass or tall fescue lawns until they have broken dormancy and are greening up for the season, usually around mid-April. Remember to keep the mower height at 3 inches tall for the mowing season and remove no more than 1/3 of the grass in one mowing, leaving 2/3 of the grass intact to grow back.
- Clean up garden tools that have been in winter storage. Now is a great time to remove rust from tools and lubricate them as needed so they are ready for the gardening season.
- Do not clean dead plant material and mulch out of flower beds and gardens spots. This dead material may look unsightly to some, but they serve as a protective buffer for tender, emerging perennial plants that are starting to peak out from under the layers. This protective layer also serves as a home for many beneficial landscape insects for the winter. Leave this layer intact until mid-April in Western Nebraska.
- Wait to prune rose canes and dead landscape plant stems until mid-April. Early pruning can initiate early, tender plant growth that can be severely damaged or killed during future cold snaps.
- When pruning landscape plant stems back in mid-April, leave eight inches of dead stem behind for pollinating insects to use as a habitat for the next generation of native bee species as a natural "bee hotel" to improve pollinator insects in landscapes and gardens. New growth from plants will "hide" these stems from view.
- Rose canes can be pruned back in mid-April at a 45-degree angle on the cane. Prune dead cane material back to where new growth is present.
- Do not start lawn sprinkler systems at this time to avoid damage to back flow devices, irrigation lines, sprinkler heads, and breaking dormancy in the lawns.
If anyone has any questions about "False Spring" and gardening jobs that can be carried out in March and early April, please send an email to [email protected], call the Extension Office in North Platte at (308) 532-2683. I will be happy to help with any questions that gardeners may have.
David Lott is the Horticulture Extension Educator with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension in North Platte, Nebraska.