April To-Do

To-Do:
1. Remove thatch and aerate warm-season lawns.
2. Clean up drying grasses within 30 feet of structures for fire prevention.
3. Apply mulch to new and existing plantings for water retention (bare ground = bad ground).
4. Monitor for slugs and snails.
5. Check citrus trees for scales, mites, or thrips (I found quite a few yesterday). Pick or spray with horticulture oil.
6. Water by need, rather than by schedule.

Prune:
1. Azaleas and camellias as they finish blooming.
2. Pinch back fast-growing annuals to encourage dense growth and more blooms.
3. Thin any fruit of apple, apricot, peach nectarine, and plum to about 6 to 8 inches apart.
4. Deadhead roses to encourage repeat blooming.
5. Take 4" cuttings to propagate chrysanthemums, azaleas, geraniums and other perennials that grow from soft wood cuttings.

To Plant:
(Plant annual summer herbs and veggies at two-week intervals for successive crops. Continue to plant annuals and perennials while it is still cool so that they can establish a good root system before the weather becomes really hot.
1. Asparagus
2. Beans (from seed)
3. Beets
4. Carrots (from seed)
5. Chard
6. Chayote
7. Chives (from seed)
8. Corn (from seed)--wait until it gets much warmer--corn is a HEAT-LOVING plant
9. Cucumbers (from seed)
10. Eggplant (from seed)
11. Melons (from seed)
12. Okra
13. Peppers (from seed)
14. Radish (from seed)
15. Spinach (from seed)
16. Squash (from seed)
Unless you have starts ("little plants"), it's too late for: peas, cabbage, and lettuce, as the weather will probably warm up much faster than the plants can take--the peas I have (which made it through the winter and are now over six feet tall) are beginning to show heat stroke--and it's just been mild sun.