Spring Pruning

The azaleas have been blooming for some time now--you would think that spring is here in full force with longer days and sunshine.  We still have another month, at least, of winter in NE Florida and March could be rather windy and cool.

My park area on Back Forty has been so neglected that I don't know where to start the spring cleaning.  Hurricane Matthew has reorganized the landscape too and not in a helpful way.

It blew down a large holly type tree that produced a profusion of berries for the birds in the winter time.  It took some time to cut that up and remove it.





The strong hurricane winds also blew down large limbs on a huge tree on the city property near our Back Forty.  Some of the limbs ended up near our garden.

It was too precarious for us to cut and remove.  The city workers eventually came and removed all limbs and branches from their property as well as from ours.  How nice! We appreciate their hard work.




 
Pruning azaleas:  Prune the azaleas to your liking after they have finished blooming.  I usually cut down on the tall single rod type that has no other branches growing.  I trim down on the all too stringy branches.  If the azaleas are young, I give them some of their special fertilizer.

Pruning the Plumbago:  Last spring/summer, I drastically trimmed the plumbago around the shed while it still was blooming.  I need to be able to move around the shed to paint it.  I didn't think I see any growth and blooms again for a long time.  The plumbago came back green and healthy and bloomed.

Usually, it's a better idea to trim this plant in the fall after it has bloomed out.  But leaving in warm and sunny Florida, zone 9, it doesn't seem to matter when the plumbago gets trimmed.  It does have a tendency to spread and should e kept in check.


Pruning the roses:  My roses has decided to bloom in the late fall.  Nothing spectacular--just one rose at a time; but oh! so beautiful.  The roses should definitely be trimmed before the warm spring weather arrives.  It is strongly recommended to prune by the end of February.

I carefully remove the black spotted leaves and put them out with the yard debris that is to be collected and removed.  I cut the branches and set them out in a barrel to be emptied and removed by the Sanitation Workers.

I also clean up the ground around the ground and remove weeds and give the roses a good mound of mulch.  I hold off on the fertilizer.

This is enough work to start off the spring cleaning in the beginning of February.

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