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Inside The New York Botanical Garden

Leda Meredith’s Top April Gardening Picks

Posted in Adult Education on March 25 2014, by Leda Meredith

Leda Meredith is the Gardening Coordinator for Adult Education

Leda MeredithAfter months of an especially relentless winter, spring is officially here! It’s not only the time when sunshine and blossoms beckon, but also when we need to get busy in the garden. The gardening you do now will determine the success of your landscape through summer and even into fall. Tasks to tackle can include anything from preparing your soil for the coming year to making the leap toward designing a pollinator-friendly garden. For those of you more concerned with indoor plants, it might be time to think about a spring repotting!

Whatever your focus, NYBG’s Adult Education courses offer you plenty of opportunities to become a better gardener. They might even give you the confidence to try something entirely new in your home garden. Here are my picks for the classes that will give you the skills you need for your best gardening year ever:

For essential gardening knowledge:

Soil Basics: Get It Right! – April 5

Healthy soil makes the difference between plants that struggle and plants that thrive. Improve your soil this spring and you will reap the benefits for years to come.

For indoor gardeners:

Orchids: Divide, Repot, Rejuvenate! – April 5

If you want your orchids to rebloom gorgeously for many years, you will need to repot them occasionally. In this class you’ll learn everything you need to know to do so successfully.

Because a garden is more than plants:

Designing a Bird- and Pollinator-Friendly Garden – April 12

Your garden can be a sanctuary for wildlife, and in return the birds and beneficial insects attracted to it will both control harmful pests and increase the yield from fruiting plants.

Coping with Deer: Perennials that Deer Seldom Browse – April 26

Unless you’re gardening in an urban area of the Northeast, deer are almost certainly a threat to your garden. Here is what you need to know about which plants are the least likely to be bothered by our area’s massive deer population.

Leda Meredith is passionate about gardens, foraging for wild edibles, and ethnobotany. This month, she teaches three classes for the Garden: Herbs, Herb Gardens, and Herbalism; The Scented Garden; and Ethnobotany of Our Native Flora. You can follow her gardening adventures and learn about her new book, Northeast Foraging: 120 Wild and Flavorful Edibles from Beach Plums to Wineberries, at Leda’s Urban Homestead.