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MARCH/APRIL GARDENING CALENDAR
By Anna Snider, Horticulture Resource Educator, CCE-Westchester County

Vegetables and Flowers
4Seeds of pansies, calendula, snapdragons, leeks, onions, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, peppers, and other plants that need a few week's ....head start can be planted indoors under a fluorescent lamp or in a bright window. Count back six weeks from last frost date.
4Peppers should be started about 10 weeks before last frost date (about May 15 in lower Westchester).
4Plant peas and spinach when soil is dry enough to work.
4Plant parsley, radish, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, collards and lettuce in early April.
4Scallions, shallots, and onions can be planted in mid-April.
4Plant bareroot roses when the soil is thawed and drained. Plant grafted roses with the graft union at soil level.

Fruits
4Prune fruit trees before buds swell. Prune off all suckers and water sprouts. Prune out weak (narrow) crotches and direct sunlight into the ....center of the tree.

Trees and Shrubs
4Renew overgrown summer and fall-blooming shrubs by pruning. Wait to prune spring-blooming shrubs until after flowering.
4Prune trees before buds swell. Be careful not to cut into the branch collar. Do not paint the wounds.
4Plant B&B and container-grown trees and shrubs. Dig a hole only as deep as the rootball but three to five times as wide. Remove synthetic ....burlap, natural burlap, and wire cages before planting. Do not amend the soil in the planting hole.

Lawns
4Do not fertilize your lawn until Memorial Day.
4Rake leaves and winter debris away from paved surfaces and storm sewers.
4Begin mowing when grass is 4 to 4 ½ inches tall. Set mower height to 3 inches. Make sure that mower blade is sharp.