The Wave Crew Wave Petunias | Cool Wave Pansies
As Winter makes its exit (good riddance!) it’s time to prepare your garden for Wave Petunias. Here are some helpful checklist items to fill your Spring to-do list:
Top Tools
You’ll need just a few tools to make your garden life easier:
Shovel – A round-point shovel helps dig into the ground, break up soil, and scoop compost.
Hand Trowel – You’ll use this to plant your garden and loosen soil in small patches. It’s great for weeding, too!
Gardening Gloves – Protect those hands! Select a quality pair that stands up to use and some moisture. Also, choose a bright color – it will make them instantly visible in the garden so you don’t forget to bring them inside.
Hand Pruners – For your ongoing maintenance, a good bypass hand pruner will be your champion for branch cleanup and refreshing tired-looking plants. Be sure to try them out at the store before purchasing to ensure they’re comfortable to use.
Watering Can – Look for one in a 2-gallon size that has a round head with lots of little holes. This produces a softer spray and won’t damage young plants or delicate blooms.
Soil Prep
As soon as the ground has thawed, you can begin loosening your garden soil with a shovel or a pitchfork if you have it handy. The freezing and thawing that took place over the cold months has probably improved its texture, but a good turn-over – sections at a time – keeps it rough and loose for now. Work down about 8 to 10 inches if you can.
This is also a the time to evaluate your soil to see if it can use some amending. Adding organic matter (like compost, manure, even dried leaf litter) makes a healthy consistency for your Wave Petunia roots to establish.
Aim for 2/3 good-quality garden soil and 1/3 nutrient-rich compost. Work the organics into the ground with your shovel, then use a hard garden rake to level the loose soil without packing it down.
Spring Clean Up & Care
Do a once-around your outdoor space. Remove rocks, roots, weeds and any other leftover debris from the previous planting season. Once you have a clean and level planting area, top-dress your garden with granular fertilizer. Spread handfuls over the soil and use the rake again to work it in. Wave Petunias are vigorous, and this extra boost of nutrition when you plant will keep the blooms coming.
Paying attention to this early garden prep will give you a great head start to a beautiful and colorful garden of Wave Petunias.
Still spring-dreaming about which Waves to plant this year? Check out what’s new at our @WaveGardening social media sites, and sign up for our timely Wave newsletter. We’ll be sharing tips and tricks all season long.