After a long winter, it's tempting to get outside and start tidying, digging, and checking everything off our spring to-do list. But April is such a gentle, in-between month in the garden, and it really asks us to slow down, pay attention, and let nature lead a little. This week on the podcast, Joanne reviews what you should and shouldn't be doing in your April garden.

Why is patience so important in the April garden?

Because early spring gardening depends more on weather and soil conditions than the calendar. Joanne emphasizes waiting for the ground to dry, the frost to leave, and nighttime temperatures to rise before raking, planting, digging, or cleaning up too much. Acting too early can damage lawns, compact soil, and disrupt beneficial insects.

What garden jobs can you safely do in April?

April is a good time for gentle, low-risk tasks such as starting seeds indoors, refreshing spring containers, adding compost to the vegetable garden, sharpening tools, and lightly cleaning up only when conditions are right. Joanne also suggests using April to plan, take photos, and observe what is happening in the garden rather than rushing into heavy work.

How should gardeners handle pruning and cleanup in early spring? Carefully and selectively. Joanne warns against pruning spring-blooming shrubs too early, cutting back perennials before insects emerge, or shaping evergreens in April. Instead, she recommends watching for insect activity, removing only winter damage where needed, and timing pruning based on the type of plant so gardeners do not sacrifice blooms or stress plants unnecessarily.

Have a topic you'd like Joanne to discuss?

Email your questions and comments to [email protected], or connect with Joanne on her website: down2earth.ca

Find Down the Garden Path on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube: @downthegardenpathpodcast.

Down the Garden Path Podcast

On Down The Garden Path, professional landscape designer Joanne Shaw discusses down-to-earth tips and advice for your plants, gardens and landscapes. As the owner of Down2Earth Landscape Design, Joanne Shaw has been designing beautiful gardens for homeowners east of Toronto for over a decade. She does her best to bring you interesting, relevant and useful topics to help you keep your garden as low-maintenance as possible.

In Down the Garden Path: A Step-By-Step Guide to Your Ontario Garden, Joanne and fellow landscape designer Matthew Dressing distill their horticultural and design expertise and their combined experiences in helping others create and maintain thriving gardens into one easy-to-read monthly reference guide. Get your copy today on Amazon.

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