Spring is here! With longer, lighter days and slightly warmer temperatures, many of us are ready to spend more time outdoors and yard work can be just what we’ve needed. For those fortunate to have an area to plant vegetables, it is an ideal opportunity to grow your own produce – vegetables, herbs and fruit. Spending time working in the yard has many health benefits including stress relief, mood enhancement and blood pressure reduction. Growing your own produce can also encourage healthier eating habits, which is great for improving your diet and boosting your vitamin intake.
Planting suggestions for April
The weather in April can be mixed and will vary greatly depending on your zone, but there are plenty of plants and seeds that can be sown outside straight away. Cabbage, broccoli, summer squash, beets, corn, peas, eggplant, peppers, carrots, spinach and onions can all be sown outside without the need for a greenhouse after the last frosts. If you’d like to add some fruit to your garden, raspberry canes and strawberry plants can also be planted outside in April.
Grow your own produce without a garden
If you don’t have a back yard, but you do have an outside space that gets good light, you can grow plants in containers or window boxes. Many different vegetables can be grown this way, but there is more success for those with fairly shallow roots. Good options include spinach, radishes, green onions, garlic and herbs.
Why not get the kids involved too? There’s nothing better than sampling your own home-grown produce.
