When should you start spring gardening? Experts say not just yet

Spring is here, but planting plans have been put on pause. CTV’s Alexandra Holyk explains what gardeners can do while they wait for the cold to subside.

The unpredictable weather is wreaking havoc on the plans of gardeners looking to get a head start on the season.

Waterloo Region has already gotten snow, freezing rain and cooler-than-average temperatures in just the first week of April.

“We’ve seen a few warm days and then a few really cold days,” said Rosemary Van Roose, co-owner of Belgian Nursery in Breslau, Ont.

With more cold days and nights on the horizon, she advises holding off on planting for now.

“I wouldn’t be too anxious yet to get out in the garden,” Van Roose said. “Especially these cold nights coming up. [It] is no benefit to the plants to be out in this weather.”

But if you’ve already started planting, she said there’s no need to panic.

“Move them inside the house, in the garage overnight, the next night or two with this extreme cold,” Van Roose suggested. “If that’s not possible, if they’re plants in the garden, maybe covering them with an old blanket, bed sheet, [but] not plastic.”

While gardeners wait for a warm-up, the best thing to do in the meantime is plan and prep.

“Turning soil, adding fresh compost, manure, that type of thing,” Van Roose said. “So that when the weather is great, you’re good to go.”

The best plants for early spring are perennials such as hellebores and violas, as well as pansies.

“Because they can tolerate seasonal temperatures,” Van Roose explained.

Landscapers are also gearing up for gardening season, despite the delay.

“We haven’t really started much,” said Steven Zula, a landscape designer who works with Van Oordt Landscaping. “Just because the ground is a little too frozen and the grass hasn’t started to grow enough to do thatching and fertilizing yet.”

According to Zula, there’s no such thing as jumping the gun on some spring tasks.

“If the weather’s nice enough and you’re ambitious enough to get out and start doing yard cleanup, by all means, have at it,” he said.

For those looking to get professional landscaping done, Zula said now is the time to consult the experts.

Gardening season should be fully underway by mid-May.