Spring has arrived and now is the time to spruce up your home and garden.
Landscaping and lawn maintenance should be on your list of priorities, together with the repotting of plants and flowers.
At Brighton Nurseries, manager Eddie Simas and his staff are on hand to give you all the advice you need on achieving your dream garden.
The family business has a wide choice of indoor and outdoor plants, ceramic and glazed pots, garden products, tools and fertilizers.
Weeds
Mr Simas, part-owner, said that when it comes to landscaping, it is best to buy in plants as you go rather than buying everything at once.
“You should have some sort of plan,” he said.
“Research some Bermuda gardening books about what grows well on the island and then plan what you want to do.
“You can then visit the nurseries to see what plants are available.
“Put mulch on the soil as that stops weed and it also helps in retaining moisture on your lawns.
“Products such as ‘Weed ‘n’ Feed’ and ‘Weed B Gon’ can be used on lawns, but read the directions carefully.
“At the moment the weather is very dry so any time you’re putting something on your lawn, make sure the plants are not suffering from drought conditions first.
“Water the garden a day or two before you apply the product because otherwise, if it’s dry, this will shock and burn the plants.
“Another tip is not to cut your grass too short because that will only help weeds to thrive, but a healthy lawn with tight, thick grass will keep the weeds away.”
Mr Simas said: “In the spring, homeowners should also be doing up their pots and flowerbeds. Now is also a good time to plant trees.
“There’s a greater selection of plants available and the weather is not too hot or cold.
“Now is a good time to refresh your pots with new plants such as pansies, begonia, petunias and impatiens.
“We also carry hardy perennials which flower all year round.
“Some examples of these are pentas, blue daze, lantana and hisbiscus.
Watering
“When it comes to replanting, you should change or freshen up the soil in the pot or flowerbed. Use potting mix for pots and a garden mix with manure for flowerbeds.
“Start off slowly. People tend to buy too much and then get overwhelmed, so just do as much as you think you can that day, and come back at the weekend before you tackle more.
“You should maybe just spend an hour or two in the garden and plant for that.
“Don’t buy a week’s worth of items when you know you’ve only got two hours of work.
“If you don’t have anywhere to store the plants and forget to water them, they will die.
“But everything should be fine once it’s in the ground.
“Once the plants are in the beds, water them two or three times a week.
“And once you’ve potted the plants, also don’t forget to water them.
“They should be watered each day.
“Also maintain your plants with fertilizer. You can get water-soluble fertilizer such as Miracle-Gro.
“Use a slow release fertilizer — one application will last for about three months.”
Mr Simas added: “You will also need to deadhead potted flowers and keep an eye out for pesky pests.
“Some people wait until they are infested with snails, slugs or caterpillars, but it’s better to be preventive.
“Sprays and granules can deter these pests. There’s also a natural, organic product called Neem which stays on for three months and which has an oil to make the leaves shine.
“There are lots of organic products now to deal with pests and insects.”
• Brighton Nurseries, 12 Brighton Lane, Devonshire. Call 236-5862. Also see the Facebook page.