Get Ready for Spring Planting, Novi!

Spring is finally here and Begonia Brothers Garden Center in downtown Northville has some tips on how to get ready for the season.

John Mincher, landscape architect at the garden center, said a good time to start planting outside is just a few weeks away when there's no chance of a late frost.

"Evergreens and shrubs are a good thing to plant," he said. "Perennials and flowers, wait for about a month to plant them."

To prepare for planting, Mincher said people should clean up all the sticks and leaves in the garden beds and spread mulch to prevent weeds. 

"They should also be cutting back perennials from last year," he said. 

Mincher said it's a good time to trim roses, hydrangeas and ornamental grasses. Other tasks around your yard or garden that Mincher recommends doing now are:

• repair or replace plastic edging around garden beds
• fertilize plants like shrubs and small trees
• aerate the lawn

What to plant?

"In the sun, Knock Out Roses are great. They provide color from June to November," Mincher said.

He said he has a handful of plants that he likes to use, including several that are low maintenance.

"Low maintenance as far as I look at it is something you only need to do one time a year. There’s no such thing as zero maintenance," he said.

He recommends "easy" plants like: the Siberian Iris, Rozanne Geraniums, Knock Out Roses, Limelight Hydrangeas, Boxwoods and Dwarf Lilacs.

"Boxwoods are very low maintenance," he said. "You only trim them once a year."

There are different factors like wind, water, sunlight and room to grow that make a plant grow its best, he said.

"Basically the trick is just to find the right plant for the right spot," he said.

For those interested in growing vegetables and herbs, he said they can start them off indoors.

"Most herbs I think you can buy in little pots," he said. "Or get them going in an egg carton on the inside of your house on a window sill." 

Those with more gardening questions, can call or visit Begonia Brothers Garden Center at 314 North Center St. in Northville.