- Spring is the time to begin planning and preparing for the upcoming growing season, even in colder climates.
- Spring cleanup of gardens involves cutting off dead foliage, but leaving some stems for beneficial insects.
- Testing the soil and adding the necessary nutrients are crucial steps in preparing for a successful growing season.
Temperatures may still be cool across much of the United States, but it's time to prepare for your growing season plans.
According to the National Gardening Association , gardening is a growing trend (no pun intended) in the United States, with more than 80% of households participating.
Lawn care is the most important gardening chore, but planting flowers, vegetables, and houseplants (all good spring garden projects) have increased in popularity in recent years.
"Spring is the time when gardeners get their seeds, start transplanting and prepare vegetable beds," said Dave Whitinger, executive director of the National Gardening Association.
If you want to grow vegetables or plant flowers this year, now is the time to act. Even die-hard garden lovers need to prepare for spring.
Here are some tips to help you prepare for spring.
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Seeds: Grow or plant them this spring
Many gardeners expect to spend more this year, according to a survey by Axiom Marketing, a Minneapolis-based marketing firm that serves the agriculture, horticulture and landscaping industries. The 2025 Garden Outlook Study found that around 40% expect to spend more.
To save money, many gardeners start with seeds to grow plants that they can transplant instead of purchasing them from a garden center or a large retailer such as Home Depot.
"Depending on where people live, they are currently thinking about preparing their gardens for potato growing, perhaps planting seeds in trays to transplant later, planning their gardening activities for the year, or learning new gardening topics through reading, listening or webinars," said Cheryl Boyer, professor and extension program director in the Department of Horticulture and Natural Resources at Kansas State University.
Flowers and vegetables such as tomatoes, lettuce and peppers can be grown from seeds indoors. Ideally, you should start six weeks before the expected last frost date where you live.
There are many variables when growing plants indoors, including the type of plant, its hardiness, the container to use, and the planting mix. For advice on individual plants, from arugula to zucchini, see the plant database on the National Gardening Association website .
You can also check your state's extension service website, usually affiliated with a university, for local planting tips (just search for your state's extension service online). For example , West Virginia University Extension has a detailed section on starting seeds.
Many of the plants grown from seed were scheduled to be planted last month, with transplanting beginning in April. Therefore, you may want to set a calendar reminder for next year. However, according to the NGA website, some plants such as lettuce can be sown directly into the garden once the ground has thawed.
According to the NGA, seeds for summer plants such as pumpkins , cucumbers and sunflowers can be planted in the ground as early as mid-April.
When growing flowers from seeds indoors, you can prepare them for transplanting by placing them outdoors during the hottest times of the day.
When do you start planting a garden?
You can find out when it's time to plant outside by visiting the National Gardening Association website and entering your zip code. In Kansas, for example, the frost-free growing season begins April 19 and ends October 11, according to the website.
It is not necessary to wait until the threat of frost has passed before planting vegetables and other crops. "Spring is the season to grow cool-weather vegetables," such as beets, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, lettuce, onions and turnips, said Miri Talabac, horticulture specialist at the University of Maryland Extension Home and Garden Information Center.
It's also good to plant hardy plants like perennials (think asters, delphiniums and pansies) as well as shrubs, trees and vines in early spring, he told USA TODAY in an email exchange. You can plant them "whenever the soil is usable (i.e. not frozen or too wet)," explains Talabac. "Only frost-sensitive plants such as greenhouse-grown herbs and warm-season annuals (flowers and ornamental vegetables such as tomatoes) should wait until temperatures (air and soil) are warmer."
Less hardy plants should be buried in the ground as soon as the danger of frost has passed. ( For more information, see these planting zone maps for each region of the United States .)
Spring cleaning for your garden
If you already have a garden or outdoor area where you have grown plants, shrubs and flowers, you can do a little tidying up and prepare to return. But don't overdo it.
"We advise gardeners not to over-clean in the spring and to prune old perennial trunks and shrub branches," Talabac said in an email exchange. "This is primarily because several beneficial insects (including some of our native bees) can use these plant parts as shelter for the winter and do not resume activity until later in the year."
When cutting off dead plant stems and flowers, leave between 20cm and 60cm of space, depending on the plant. These stems will remain hidden behind the flowers this year and will continue to be a possible refuge for bees and other beneficial insects that emerge as temperatures rise. For more information, Talabac recommends the Tufts Pollinator Initiative and Xerces Society websites.
In flower beds you can rake, trim foliage and remove winter mulch. If there are excess full leaves, you can remove them as the planting and growing season approaches.
You can prune rose bushes, fruit trees, and most other trees, but postpone pruning birch, maple, and walnut trees until they bloom and plant new trees. Additionally, fertilize and add new mulch to a depth of 4 inches, but avoid creating "mulch volcanoes" where 1 foot or more of mulch wraps around the trunk.
These suggestions come from the Kansas State Research and Extension website. "Each state's extension service will likely provide a gardening calendar on its website for activities that people think of each week of the year," Boyer said.
You may want to do a soil test. DIY kits are available or you can send samples to a laboratory (your local extension service may recommend one). Knowing the composition of your soil can help you determine what fertilizers or other nutrients you should add. For garden enthusiasts this time of year, there is "a lot of soil prep, seed prep, pruning and tool prep," Boyer said.
When you get there, don't forget to consider where you live. "Southern states may already be past their frost dates and are busy with all sorts of planting projects," Boyer said. "The northern states are still in the dream catalog and drool phase of gardening."
Follow Mike Snider on Threads, Bluesky and X: mikegsnider & @mikegsnider.bsky.social & @mikesnider .
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