Monthly gardening calendar for New England

If you're a gardener living in New England, then you know that the weather can be unpredictable. One day it might be warm and sunny, and the next it might be cold and rainy. That's why it's important to have a monthly gardening calendar that outlines the tasks you should be doing each month. In this blog post, we will provide a monthly gardening calendar for New England gardeners!

The items listed are accompanied by affiliate links, meaning I earn a small commission if a purchase is made through my links. This has no impact on the cost to the consumer. I link to products this way whenever possible, and it has no bearing on the products I choose to review or recommend.

January

Although it might be cold outside in New England, this is the time to start planning your garden, so you can get a head start when the weather starts to warm up.

Take some time to reflect on your garden from the previous year. What worked well? What didn't work so well? Make a list of changes you want to make for the upcoming year. Keep a garden journal to keep track of the changes you want to make and any ideas that you have for your garden.

Check your garden tools and supplies to make sure they are in good condition and that you have everything you need for the upcoming gardening season. If you need to replace some tools or are interested in trying out some new ones, now's the time to do it!

If you have indoor plants, monitor for insects and treat them with insecticidal soap if necessary. Also, remember to check their soil. Most houseplants don't need a lot of water during the colder months. Mist them regularly and they should do well.

“There is always work to be done in the garden.”

February

Continue to plan your garden for the upcoming season and start ordering plants and seeds online or from local nurseries. I personally like getting seeds from Botanical Interests.

Although you probably can't plant any vegetables outdoors yet in February, this is a great month for indoor planting. Start seeds of lettuce, spinach, and other leafy greens indoors so you can transplant them into your garden later on in the season.

Inspect your perennials when there isn't any snow covering them. If they have been lifted out of the ground by frost, press them back down.

Examine trees to see if any should be pruned. Without foliage, broken or diseased branches are easier to spot.

Now is the time to prune grapevines. They will bleed in warmer weather.

monthly garden calendar for New England — **Monthly Garden Tasks**

Starting seeds indoors is a great garden task that you can do in the colder months. They can be transplanted once the soil warms up.

March

Hopefully, the weather will be starting to warm up and Spring will be on its way!

If you haven't already, now is a great time to start seeds inside.

Remove dead and diseased branches from fruit trees, as well as a general trim. This is the ideal moment to prune dormant shoots.

To keep your plants healthy, cut woody perennials to 6 inches above the ground.

If you see any plants that have been pushed out of the ground by frost, push them back into the ground.

April

April is a busy month in the garden!

Hopefully, all of the snow is gone at this time. Now is a good time to prepare your garden for the season!

If you haven't already, prune any diseased trees or limbs it is easier to see now that the trees are leafless.

Pull any weeds now as the ground is moist and softer. Just make sure you don't pull up any of your perennials. It is always a good idea to have a record/pictures of where your plants are planted.

Mulch your beds and apply a pre-emergent herbicide to your lawn to help control any weeds that might pop up in the coming months.

Rake up any leaves that may have been missed during fall cleanup and reseed areas of the lawn that are bare or that have died.

Edge flower beds with a spade. You will also want to stake garden plants that grow tall and need additional support. You can use trellis, plant supports, or Rebar. I have personally used Rebar to help secure my knockout roses. It's inexpensive, sturdy, and long-lasting. You can purchase it at Home Depot.

Prune roses by removing any dead or diseased wood, and then cut the bush back by about one-third.

You can plant any cold-weather annuals such as pansies, snapdragons, and violas. Also, harden off any annuals that you planted indoors so that they will be ready to be transplanted.

Now is an excellent time to divide and plant perennials, as well as prune away any last year's growth.

Once the soil has warmed up, you can fertilize shrubs and trees-just make sure you do this before the leaves appear and new growth occurs.

You can also prune any bushes after they've finished flowering. Don't trim shrubs before they've flowered or you'll remove the following year's flowers.

May

May is a very enjoyable month in the garden! The weather is warming up and the flowers are starting to bloom.

Now is a great time to stop by your favorite local nursery to peruse the beautiful flowers and plants and see if there is anything new you want to add to your garden.

By the end of this month, it will be time to plant in the ground. You want to wait till the last frost has passed. A good rule of thumb is usually around Memorial Day weekend in New England. New England is known to have some hard frost in May and you would hate to lose all of your plants!

You can transplant any plants that you started indoors earlier in the year into your garden once any chance of frost has passed. It is also a great time to plant perennials, shrubs, groundcover, roses.

It is also time to begin planting your vegetable garden. Try growing marigolds, zinnias, and nasturtiums around vegetables and flower beds to deter insects.

You will probably need to do your first cut of the season this month. Cutting the lawn to 3 inches in length is the ideal height for green, lush grass that has strong roots.

Remove the spent flower heads from hyacinths and tulips. Also, fertilize any bulbs that are up.

Deadhead your early-blooming perennials such as irises and bleeding hearts.

Prune any shrubs that have finished blooming -for example, rhododendrons, azaleas, forsythia, spirea, and lilacs. Trimming them as soon as they are done blooming is essential since they will develop the buds for next year in the following month or so.

Watch for pests and diseases and treat them as soon as possible.

June

This is the month to enjoy your garden! The flowers are in full bloom and it's usually a time when everything is thriving.

A lot of the work in the garden this month is maintenance-deadheading, weeding, and watering.

Make sure to deadhead any flowers that have stopped blooming-this will encourage new blooms. To maintain continuous blooming, you'll need to fertilize annuals with a liquid fertilizer.

Weed your garden regularly-the earlier you weed the better. Weeds can take over a garden quickly!

Water your plants if there has been little rain. Make sure not to overwater.

Begin harvesting any vegetables that are ready to enjoy!

Watch for pests and diseases as this can quickly ruin a garden.

New England Monthly Gardening Calendar — Pin for later!

July

This is usually the hottest month of the year and it's important to stay hydrated while gardening!

Continue with weeding, deadheading, and watering as needed. You might need to refresh your mulch in areas where it has thinned out.

Harvest any vegetables that are ready, usually, you will have a beautiful bounty of tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, peppers, and beans during July. Now is the time to plan what fall vegetables you will grow.

Plant any fall bulbs now.

Watch for pests and diseases and treat them immediately so they don't do any damage to your plants. Japanese beetle tends to be a problem this month.

If your grass is getting a little burned out, try to cut it a little longer and water it when rain is sparse.

If you are planning a getaway in July, make sure you have a neighbor or friend tend to the garden while you are gone. You would hate for all of your hard work to go to waste!

August

Your garden should be in full swing this month. If you have a vegetable garden, you need to stay on top of harvesting your crops. If you have more than you can eat, give some to a neighbor or donate it to a local food pantry.

Your flowers should be in their full glory. Indulge in the lovely hues and fragrant scents. Create a bouquet out of them and bring it inside to enjoy.

Watering your plants is going to be important as August's heat can be intense. Your plants and vegetable garden might need a drink on hot days.

Keep deadheading spent blooms and monitoring for any signs of disease or pest infestations.

September

This is usually the month when the weather starts to cool down at night, but it's still hot during the day. Although as the month progresses, the weather will start to cool down more, and by the end of the month, there is the potential for frost.

It is a great time to transplant shrubs that you want to relocate. Maybe they have outgrown their current space or you just don't like their placement anymore-transplanting can be very rewarding. Now is the ideal time to transplant boxwoods.

If you are looking to add new shrubs or Evergreens this is also the time to do it.

You should also plant any of your spring-flowering bulbs now.

To ensure that perennials and shrubs survive the winter, give them fertilizer.

Stop pruning shrubs. Frost will nip any new growth, which is not desirable for the plant.

On roses, hips should form. It instructs the plant to harden off for winter.

September is a great month for lawn care. Depending on how your lawn looks and what issues you have, you can fertilize, aerate, and overseed your lawn this month.

October

October is a month that is dedicated to cleanup.

Clean up your garden by removing any dead plants, leaves, or branches. This will help prevent diseases from spreading.

Rake up all of the leaves and dispose of them. Do not compost diseased leaves as they could contaminate your compost pile.

Make sure to cut back perennials and weed the garden beds.

Place plants in containers indoors for the winter. Any pots that might be damaged or cracked by cold temperatures should be placed away.

If you didn't get a chance to do a soil test earlier in the year, now is a good time to test it.

November

There are a few last-minute odds and ends that you should do in your garden this month. It's time to put your garden to bed for the winter!

Put a layer of mulch on top of the soil to help keep it insulated and prevent the soil from freezing.

Dispose of any dead plants or leaves.

Store any tools or gardening supplies that you won't be using over the winter.

Check your fences and gates to make sure everything is in good condition and fix anything that needs it.

Mow your lawn one last time for the season.

If you have a water feature in your garden, now is the time to drain it and cover it up. Also, drain and bring in any hoses.

Make sure all of your plants are securely covered with mulch, straw, or burlap sacks to protect them through a long, cold winter.

December

This is the month to start thinking about next year's garden and what you want to plant. Maybe there are some plants that you enjoyed this year and you want to include them in your garden for next season.

Take some time and peruse seed catalogs and read some gardening books to inspire you for next year's garden.

Plan out what you want to do in your garden and make a list of the supplies that you will need.

We hope you have enjoyed this monthly guide to gardening tasks in New England!