Keeping a garden looking good all year isn’t just about planting stuff and hoping it behaves. Every season, your plants and soil need a bit of attention, and having a checklist makes the whole thing way less stressful. Here’s a breakdown of what to do, season by season, so your garden stays healthy and doesn’t turn into a tangled mess.
Spring
This is the season where everything starts waking up, so it’s a good time to clear away dead leaves, pull weeds before they get stubborn, and mix some compost into the soil. Trim back any plants that got scruffy over winter, and start putting in new seeds or young plants.
Summer
When the sun’s strong and days are long, your main jobs are watering, mulching, and keeping pests under control. Check soil moisture often, because dry roots can cause plants to stall. Deadhead flowers so they keep blooming, and pick vegetables as they ripen to encourage more growth.
Autumn
This is the wind-down period. Rake up fallen leaves to stop them smothering your grass or flowerbeds, pull out spent annual plants, and plant spring bulbs before the first frost. It’s also smart to add a layer of mulch to protect roots through the cold months.
Winter
Even though not much is growing, there’s still work to do. Prune dormant trees and shrubs, protect delicate plants with covers, and clean and sharpen your garden tools so they’re ready for next season. If the ground isn’t frozen, you can still plant hardy trees and shrubs.
A checklist like this makes the whole gardening year feel more like a steady routine instead of a scramble every time the weather changes.
