Garden Maintenance Simplified
A Month by Month Guide to Easier Gardening
Whether you are a seasoned gardener or brand new to gardening, the “work” involved may seem overwhelming at times. To ease this stress, I have put together this guide to simplify and reduce the amount of time and energy needed to achieve your gardening goals.
Historically gardening has been about bending nature to the human will. We enjoy the beauty of the natural world but want to have it on our terms. These days we are starting to realize that as gardeners we can do better. We can garden for our enjoyment while at the same time helping the natural world around us. We need to shift our thinking from dominating our space to being a better steward of the space we temporarily get to work with.
In this article I’m going to cover how to simplify or potentially eliminate some of the garden chores we as gardeners do year after year. I am an intense gardener. My spaces look overwhelming to those that don’t know some time saving garden hacks. I love to sit and enjoy my space rather than feel the constant need to work.
How we garden looks different to different people. Some enjoy the wild chaos of a natural meadow in their space to the other extreme of needing plants to stay where they were planted and do what we expect the plant to do, assuming we can bend Mother Nature’s will to our own.
We all have a very personal idea of what we would like our gardens to look like. It’s one thing I find fascinating when I’m called to do a consultation. I love to try to understand the individualness of people’s personal visions. Because of that, how we look at our gardens and what maintenance we want to do varies greatly. Hopefully this will give you some ideas big or small on simplifying what you deem necessary.
Picture this...
Before we get into this, I want you to picture a forest or a natural pond or a flowing meadow. Think about how those sites are managed and how they are used. Is there anyone pruning, raking and mulching? I’m not here to say that we just need to step back and let everything go. That would certainly simplify our gardening but we are human and we like to control our environment. What we do want is to get closer to natural systems by allowing nature to do some of the work for us.
We are going to look a year, month by month to help you to plan ahead to help keep you organized.
An Easier Year in the Making
Janurary
Reflecting/Planning
- Now is the time to reflect on last year. Make a list. What did you enjoy the most? What about the least? Were you overwhelmed by a certain task? Can you maintain the space you are looking after? Is it too big? Can you add more or change what you have to increase biodiversity? Were there any plants/shrubs that just took too much of your time?
- If we consider last year maybe there is something we can change to simplify. Is there an unruly shrub that could be replaced? Do you have a prolific spreader that you just couldn’t keep on top of? Maybe it’s time to remove and replace some garden thugs.
- By asking these questions now, we can spot some changes that we can implement early on when the weather warms up.
Ordering seeds
- Take a hard look at how many you are ordering. Are you over excited? Do you still have some seed left from last year? It is so easy to go crazy on seed sites. Try to keep yourself in line to avoid future pressure to plant everything you purchased or the feeling of guilt that you just wasted money and resources on something you just don’t have the time to deal with.
Winter sowing
- Ok, not really something to help simplify but can be done in January so you might have some nice hardy perennials to plant out in the spring.
February
- Did you store any bulbs or tubers from last year? Have a look at them now to see if there are any that are already showing signs of life? Or that need to go in the compost?
- Don’t get too excited over all those seeds that are arriving. If you start them too early you are setting yourself up for extra work when they get too big too early and need to be potted up or that need to be ditched and restarted.
March
Starting to get the itch
- The weather is starting to get warmer, hopefully the snow is just about gone and we are eager to get going for the season. In reality it is just too early still for almost everything outside. So just watch the rains wash away all the grunge from winter and the green start to emerge.
Seed starting
- We can however get some seeds started in late March and earlier in March you can get those bulbs and tubers out into a warm spot to get them waking up.
Fruit tree pruning
- This is also a good time to take a look at any fruit trees you might have. Does the canopy need any minor thinning out? Now is a good time before the tree breaks dormancy and there are no leaves in the way to see problem branches. If your fruit tree is really overgrown, hold off pruning until after fruit set.
April
Feeling the warmth arrive
- It’s almost time. Go out on the deck, patio, driveway or sidewalk to enjoy the warming sun. Soak up that vitamin D and get ready.
Potting up
- Don’t forget to keep in eye on those seedlings
Empty compost & spread on garden
- But don’t dig it in. Just spread it on the surface. More on why later on.
Avoid soil compression
- Be very conscious of the moisture in the ground. If you can see your footprints in the grass it means it might still be too wet. When we walk or run equipment over wet ground (turf and gardens) you are squeezing out all the small air pockets and end up compacting the soil. Without those air pockets the soil has nowhere to hang onto some of the rain water when it falls. The rain just runs along the surface.
May
Now that we have fully arrived at the new gardening season, where do we start?
Stretch
- Be sure to stretch before jumping in. It’s been a long winter. Stretching your muscles before spending a day in the garden will be worth it.
Resist starting to clean up too early
- Another major thing to consider is the temperature. Please don’t clean anything up until the daytime temperatures are constantly above 10ºC. Before then there are still an awful lot of sleepy friends that are tucked into the leaves and hollow stems. We don’t want to risk losing all those important insects. We desperately need them.
So what can you do?
- Early on you can prune dead and damaged branches off trees & shrubs. What to do with the off cuts? You could bag them up and set them out for green week here in the city. Or, you can look to the forest and use the off cuts to create habitat. Piles of branches create a fantastic habitat for all kinds of creatures. You can cut branches down to be more of a uniform size which helps with our need to keep things tidy. The branches will break down to create supreme soil. Why not use them as design elements? Create backdrops to highlight plants or hide other not so attractive parts.
- Here’s where we start to get into using nature to help us out. By protecting the sleeping insects and providing new habitats, we are encouraging all kinds of beneficial insects to live in our spaces. Those beneficials will help to control many of the nasties out there, freeing up our time that we might have spent dealing with them.
Caution: Don’t prune oak trees in the spring, summer or fall. Oak wilt disease is on its way to us. Oaks need to be pruned in late fall when the beetles that carry the vector are no longer active.
- When the temperatures are sufficiently warm and the soil is dry enough we can start to clean up the beds. Consider leaving hollow stems about 12” tall rather than cutting them all the way to the ground. Why? Habitat for the beneficials. As this year’s growth stretches up, it will hide the stubble. What about the bits that you need to dispose of? Here we go again looking to nature. You can bag it up and send it off or you can chop it small and leave it as mulch which will break down just as it would in the wild and provide nutrients back to itself. If your beds are full, the foliage will hide most of the shrapnel. This free mulch does triple duty. We don’t have to cart it away, we don’t need to add additional compost and we are providing mulch saving us time and money.
Overseed your lawn
- Thick lawns help with moisture retention, weed suppression and pest pressure. Here’s another simplification – don’t fertilize or water! Really, it’s not needed. When the turf is thick it shades the roots and helps with moisture loss. If you use a mulching blade on your mower you don’t need to bag and dispose of the nitrogen rich grass into the landfill. Fertilizer is not needed to keep our turf healthy. If we have a drought, your grass will go dormant but if it is thick and healthy it will come back.
“No Mow May” is a myth – this actually creates more work for you in the future, damages your lawn and in reality, the bees prefer almost any other source of pollen than dandelions. If you really want to help the early pollinators, plant some very early blooming native perennials.
Monitor for invasive species & remove to garbage
- Start early and be vigilant. Garden weeding is so much simpler when you pull the weeds when small rather than when they are big. Please be sure to put any root or seeds in the garbage, not the compost where you risk spreading the invasive weed further.
Remove and replace
- Remove and replace any perennial you deemed too intensive earlier in the year. Be sure to pick new plants that suit your growing conditions. Remember the saying “Right plant, right place”? Once established if the right plants are in your space, less inputs are needed from you.
June
June, July and August are a time to rest and enjoy. There are still some tasks that are ongoing but the majority of the “work” is done.
Fruit tree pruning
- Fruit tree pruning if heavier rejuvenation is needed
Deadheading
- Deadhead perennials to keep the blooms going. Either compost (hopefully on site) or chop up the off cuts and leave in the garden as mulch.
Chelsea chop and drop
- Chelsea chop any late blooming perennials (Asters, Goldenrods, Chrysanthemums) to help prevent the dreaded flop later in the season. Again a little chore now will save having to stake later in the summer.
July and August
Deadhead, weed, enjoy
- If you have some loved perennials or shrubs that are thugs (voracious self seeders) that you just can’t part with. Make future weeding easier for yourself and remove the spent flowers before the seedheads develop.
- Be sure to take the time to enjoy the beauty surrounding you. Take the time to notice the bees, birds and butterflies you have created a home for.
September
Collect seeds
- Start to collect seed from your favourite open pollinated flowers as the seed heads dry
Stop deadheading
- Leave the seed heads for winter food for the hungry birds
Take notes
- Take notes on what might need to be split or moved in the spring. You might think you will remember but if you are like me, you won’t.
Dig tender bulbs/tubers
- Dig and carefully store those beauties for next summer.
October
October is where we can look to the natural processes to really save us some time and energy. Think back to the forest and meadow, there is no one in the forest raking the leaves, no one in the meadow chopping all the finished flowers and no one turning the soil over. Nature takes care of itself. So let’s emulate that and do nothing in the fall.
Leave the leaves
- Leave as many leaves as you can. Depending on the type of tree you have, you may be able to just rake the leaves into the garden and let them be. If you have something with really dense leaves like a Norway maple you may want to pre mulch. This does destroy any creatures that might have already bedded down in those leaves. If you have an unused corner you can pile them up and let them decompose naturally. I am the crazy person that collects other peoples leaves and spread them on a naturalized area of my yard. I live in a mature area but don’t have any deciduous trees
Don’t trim plants
- Leave the gardens as they are. Leaving the plants standing provides habitat for overwintering friends. The seed heads still standing provide food for winter birds. If we can shift our perspective we can really help to increase the biodiversity and completely take away the work of fall clean up. If you live in a neighbourhood that might frown on this, first try to change their minds if you can. If not, clean up the front and leave the back where no one can see it.
Spread any finished compost
- Just leave it on the surface though. No need to dig it in.
Fall sowing
- Fall sowing of perennials & Plant garlic & spring bulbs
November and December
- Dream of next year
The BIGGEST time saver
One last major time saver is to shift your thinking about soil – not the dirt – but healthy living soil. Think of the soil as the lifeline for the plants.
Healthy soil eliminates the need for fertilizer. Healthy soil retains more moisture. Healthy soil grows healthier plants that resist pest damage.
So how do we get this wonderful healthy, living soil? We feed it. With the simple addition of compost, we provide all the nutrients the fungi and plants need – full stop. No other fertilizers are needed. In fact, often we end up with too much phosphorus (p) and potassium (k) in our soils. If you are growing in the ground, there is enough of all the macro and micro nutrients all ready there. Excess of P & K in our soil actually often presents as a deficiency making the diagnosis very difficult. From experience I can say that I have not fertilized my turf or gardens for years without any suffering. I don’t water unless we are in a drought or if there are new plantings.
– Growing in pots with soilless medium is a different story. The name gives you a clue — soilless. There is very little mineral content so fertilizers are needed to replenish what the plants have used. Slow release fertilizers put in at the beginning of the season can save the time and waste of having to continually fertilize over the season. –
I’d also like to introduce you to the concept of No Dig Gardening. This is a substantial time saver. The concept is just as it sounds. No digging in the garden. Even the veggie patch. How’s that for a time saver! By not turning your soil you allow the vast mycorrhizal fungal network to thrive. This network feeds your plants, maintains soil structure maximizing moisture retention and super important, stores massive amounts of carbon. When you continually turn over the soil, not only are you destroying the crazy beneficial mycorrhiza by introducing oxygen, you are releasing carbon and bringing buried weed seeds to the surface when they thrive in the sun and rain causing you more work. No need to dig in that compost either. Leave that job to the creepy crawlies in the soil, they will do a better job at spreading it out than you can.
Sum up the time savings
Think about working with nature, using natural systems to save time and money while giving the living world a helping hand. By creating more habitats, you will increase your biodiversity that will aid in pest control. If we emulate how Mother Nature works, we improve our soil with the added bonus of saving us time and energy.
By shifting our habits and growing with a more ecological mindset, our spaces will need less inputs from us. This will make things more beautiful, help the environment and simplify our gardening journey.