1. Get Your Tools Ready
First thing’s first, prep your supplies. Start saving containers for seedlings, order your seeds and clean your tools. A great way to clean them is add a little oil to the metal then scrub them with a Scotchbrite pad. A neat little storage trick is to store them in a bucket of sand to prevent them from rusting.
2. Remove the debris
When you soil will no long hold a ball (drop a ball on your soil, if the ball stays put, the soil is good, if the ball rolls, it’s time to replace it), rake your lawn and clear it of the debris that has built up. Debris is also a good thing to add to compost.
3. If you have perennials, prep them
Prune your perennials as soon as you see new growth so that the plant stays on its seasonal cycle. If you have any plants that only bud on new growth, prune those plants as well. By cutting the dead stems, it will bring it out of it’s dormant stage.
4. Pull the weeds
It’s best to weed while the topsoil is still damp so that you are able to get to them before they seed the rest of the lawn. Be sure to put the
weeds in a pile separate from your compost. If the weeds mix with your compost you’ll be spreading the seeds back into your garden.
5. Test Your Soil
Before you bring any new plants and blossoms to your garden, test the soil’s balance to see what kinds of fertilizers or pesticides you may need. To test your soil’s pH level, take 1 cup of soil from different parts of your garden, add 2 spoonfuls into separate containers then add 1/2 cup of vinegar to the soil. If it fizzes, you have alkaline soil with a pH between 7-8. For more on soil testing, here is a great resource.
