As with the vegetable garden, if you make a plan for pruning and fertilizing your trees and shrubs it’s less likely that time will slip by without the task getting done. I prefer to put an event on my calendar with a reminder a week before and another the day before. This helps me remember that I need to purchase the fertilizer or get the pruning tools ready ahead of time so I don’t waste time getting things together the day the task needs to be completed. If everything is together, it’s more difficult to say, “Oh, I’ll do it later.”

An example of planning here, is pruning those azaleas that always seem to have grown over the walkway and become a nuisance for people making their way to the front door. Make an event on the calendar to prune the azaleas on April 30 after they have bloomed. As a reminder, make a note on April 23 to make sure the pruners and loppers are sharp and the wheel on the wheelbarrow is greased and there is air in the tire. I may also make a note to get the fertilizer ready and fertilize at the same time.

You can make a plan for any garden task. My advice, write it down and set reminders so it doesn’t get forgotten. I’m sticking to that!