What to Plant

  • Annuals and perennials for color!

  • Vegetables starts like beets, asian greens, melons, carrots, chard, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, lettuce, peas, peppers, mustards, squash, beans, and tomatoes will be available this month. As you can see the list of possibilities is LONG! Start radishes, carrots, beets, peas, squash and melons from seed easily.

  • Trees and shrubs are happy to be planted in your garden in the spring before the weather gets hot. Consider adding a shade tree to your garden.

Plant Protection

  • Now is the time to hang yellow jacket traps. Early spring is the time to capture the colony’s queens thus exponentially reducing the yellow jackets in the area later this summer.

  • Continue to protect new plantings from slugs and snails with pet safe Sluggo and Sluggo Maxx.

  • Start grub and flea control for your vegetable garden. Now is the time to apply beneficial nematodes for an earth friendly approach. We’ll get them in stock this month. They only here for a blink so check in regularly.

  • Control broadleaf weeds (clover, dandelion, plantain) in the lawn with Master Green; it fertilizes and eliminates weeds all at once!

  • Spring weather brings out the aphids. Check the tender new growth on roses, ornamentals, fruit trees, and vegetables and see if you can spot them. Hose aphids off with a strong stream of water. Control out of hand populations with Ladybugs, or use one of our effective earth-friendly sprays.

Fertilizers

  • If you didn't feed in March, make sure to fertilize all your plants to support and nurture beautiful spring growth! Organic fertilizers are best for our streams and rivers and gentle on plants too.

  • Citrus performs well with regular light feedings of specially formulated citrus fertilizer. Read the directions on your citrus fertilizer bag and feed accordingly, or try dividing the entire recommended year's supply of fertilizer for each tree into 8 equal portions giving the tree a little bit each month from March through October (8 months). This will ensure that your tree gets a nice even supply of food instead of sporadic periods of highs and lows. Come winter, we don't recommend encouraging new growth so only supplement with iron at that time.  We recommend Master Nursery Citrus Food, or for a completely organic approach, use Dr. Earth Citrus and Fruit Tree Fertilizer. Make quarterly applications of Iron Sulfate for optimum feeding and greening.

Maintenance

  • Don't let your lawn fall victim to H2O addiction.  As the weather warms, gardeners are tempted to over-water everything, including the lawn.  If you are watering your lawn (or your shrubs) every day, the likelihood of fungal diseases dramatically increases; soil-borne fungi thrive in water saturated soil conditions.  Also, lawns that have never needed to "look deep" for water may burn away with the stress of summer's first heat wave.  Do your lawn a favor, make it search for water by holding off at least a day, if not two or three, between deep, thorough waterings.

  • Raise the height of your lawnmower to 2 ½ -3 inches for the summer. Taller grass survives hot temperatures better and helps shade out weed invaders.

  • Prune azaleas and camellias into shape, after their blooms have faded. Begin to feed them with Master Nursery’s Camellia, Azalea and Gardenia Food and Iron Plus. Feed monthly through October.

  • Fruit Trees

    • Almond fertilize mature trees / irrigate

    • Apple fertilize mature trees / remove mummies / clean up fallen debris / fruit thinning / set out codling moth traps / irrigate

    • Apricot fertilize mature trees / fruit thinning / irrigate

    • Cherry irrigate

    • Fig irrigate

    • Peach/Nectarine fertilize mature trees / fruit thinning / irrigate

    • Pear fertilize mature trees / remove mummies / clean up fallen debris / fruit thinning / set out codling moth traps / irrigate

    • Pecan apply zinc to foliage / irrigate

    • Persimmon fertilize / irrigate

    • Pistachio plant container grown trees / apply chelated zinc / begin irrigation*

    • Plum/Pluot/Prune fertilize mature trees / irrigate / fruit thinning

    • Quince fertilize mature trees / remove mummies / clean up fallen debris / fruit thinning / set out codling moth traps / irrigate

    • Pomegranate fertilize mature trees / irrigate

    • Walnut fertilize / irrigate
      *Only begin irrigation for these plants if winter rain has stopped.