Heart of Missouri
Master Gardeners

April Calendar

April - Zone 5

Vegetables

Plants started indoors in March or bought at your local market, should be hardened off outdoors in cold frames before being transplanted into the garden .
Peppers and eggplants take 8 to 10 weeks to reach transplant size, and should be set out sometime around Memorial Day so if you haven't started these crops yet, get cracking!
Spread manure or compost and till the soil. Get potatoes, peas and onions planted as soon as the soil is dry enough to work. Sow lettuce, radishes, spinach and other cool-season greens.
Start a second round of the cabbage family vegetables indoors under lights or in the cold frame.
Small , sturdy seedlings raised under fluorescent lights for 12 to 16 hours per day will take off rapidly once planted outside in warmer weather.
Start cucumber, cantaloupe, summer squash, and watermelon seeds indoors in peat pots. It is necessary to start the vining vegetables in peat pots because they do not transplant well when the roots are disturbed.
Any tender crops planted or tomato transplants set out at this time may be subject to late frost.
Asparagus and rhubarb harvests begin.
Keep your hoe sharp! Don't allow weeds to get an early start in your garden.

Trees & Shrubs & Fruits

Buy and plant bare-root bramble fruits and grapes as soon as soil can be worked. Plant a few grapevines for their fruit, and use them as a privacy screen - CONCORD, one of the best all-purpose grapes, is fairly trouble free.
Fertilize existing small fruits and deciduous fruit tree two to three weeks before bloom with balanced food or well-composted manure; feed new fruit trees after bloom.
Prune peaches and nectarines now.
Prune shrubs that bloom in midsummer on spring growth. Wait to prune spring flowering shrubs until after they flower.
A white interior latex paint may be brushed on the trunks of newly planted fruit trees to prevent sun scald. This is also recommended for flowering Dogwood Trees. This will gradually weather off in time.
Renew the mulch around all trees and shrubs.
Begin planting strawberries, raspberries and blueberries as soon as the soil can be worked. Uncover existing strawberry beds; but remember to recover the beds if frost threatens.
Protect bees and other pollinating insects. Do not spray insecticides on fruit trees that are blooming.
For more information on Home Fruit Spray Schedules see MU Guidesheet G6010.

Lawns

Start mowing cool season grasses at recommended heights. For compost details, refer to MU Guidesheet G6705; Cool Season Grasses; Lawn Maintenance Calendar.
Chemical controls for crabgrass and other weeds should be applied before April 15.
Apply according to manufacturer's directions.

Flowers

First things first: Protect seedlings from frost and expose them to garden conditions gradually; a cold frame helps.
Bedding plants arrive at garden centers. Buy plants with buds, not flowers. Transplant out hardy perennials and annuals, such as pansy.
As soon as the snow melts, remove mulch from roses and other tender ornamentals. Be prepared to cover them again if the temperature dips below 20 degrees. Prune out dead, diseased, broken, or weak canes. Selectively prune climbers by thinning out old canes and leaving vigorous ones.
Mulch iris and daylily beds with compost. Fertilize peonies, lilacs and chrysanthemums that show new growth.
When visiting the local garden centers watch for that new or unusual plant you have never seen before; don't be afraid to take it home and plant it, it may surprise you.

Miscellaneous

Mount a rain gage on a post near the garden to keep track of rainfall. Most plants need 1 inch of water per week.
Last of April hang the hummingbird feeders.
Mole young are born in chambers deep underground.
Termites are beginning to swarm.
Look for the moral mushrooms.
Brake off the rims from the peat pots when transplanting, otherwise they act as a wick to draw moisture away from the roots.

Last Updated Tuesday, June 04, 2002

Page Created By Master Gardeners / Internet Masters
Nancy Hendrix and Sharon Young