Garden Center at Parkville #2577

On those beautiful days, clean up the yard before everything blooms in earnest. Lawn care is often a priority, as well. Plan your garden to make the most of your time and space. Remember to measure your garden so you can find fresh mulch near you as soon as it's available. No matter what outdoor projects you choose to tackle, The Home Depot Parkville Garden Center can help you enjoy your spring activities to the fullest.

Plant Hardiness Zones Explained
The first thing you should know when planting vegetables, spring flowers, and other seeds is your planting zone. Every location in the U.S. and its territories is sorted by climate. Find your zone on the USDA zone map and learn when to plant seeds.

For example, you could plant bell pepper seedlings outdoors in mid-March in Zone 10, but not until the end of May in Zone 4. You'll have good results with plants that have your zone number or less. In other words, a Zone 6 garden can support plants listed as Zones 1–6. The timeframe to direct sow outdoors in your garden is often around a month later than the indoor start date. Be sure to read your seed packet for details. If you start plants a little later than recommended, it's not ideal, but it will likely even out as time passes.

Gardening in Your Growing Zone
In Zone 5, which includes parts of Pennsylvania as well as upstate New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and southern Maine, your best bets for veggies will be root vegetables like beets and carrots, leafy greens including lettuce, and cruciferous veggies like broccoli and kale. You can try squash, but prepare for additional warming upkeep when late frost is forecast. Target planting dates are roughly mid-March through May 1st, depending on whether you're directly sowing them into your garden or starting your seeds indoors.

Much of Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, New Jersey, Connecticut, southern New York state, and Massachusetts are in Zone 6, so planting can begin earlier there than farther north. Parts of Virginia are even warmer, coming in at Zone 7. The outdoor growing season doesn't begin until mid-March or even April, although you can plant some veggie seeds halfway through February. Tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, squash, onions, and other classic garden crops will do well in this region, and most of them can get an early start indoors before spring really moves in.

Start Seeds Indoors
You can save money and gain the satisfaction of growing your garden from seeds by starting them indoors. We've got all the seed starter supplies you'll need. Veteran planters and new gardeners alike should disinfect seed trays with a watered-down bleach solution before reusing them each year. When your trays or pots are prepared, plant your seeds. As for the soil, test the mineral levels and pH to find if it needs amendments or additives. Soil pH differs among regions, and what your plants need depends on what you're growing. Most vegetable plants like a pH of around 6.5. Soil amendments can tip the balance of your soil in a direction that'll help your plants.

Measure your finger to use it as a ruler. In general, you'll plant 3–5 seeds, then press them into the soil to the depth you need with your finger. Mark where you planted the seeds with a plant tag or toothpick. Otherwise, it'll be a surprise when the sprouts push out of the soil.

Sprouts
When your seeds have sprouted but aren't ready to go outside yet, you can still prepare them for outdoor life. These inch-tall micro-seedlings are fragile but resilient. Seedlings certainly don't get all this pampering in nature, so they can handle more than you think. However, don't go overboard, as your sprouts are still babies. You can even use an oscillating fan on low to mimic the wind and strengthen their stems.

Harden Your Seedlings
Harden your seedlings for strong plants. On days that are warmer than 45–50 degrees, take your trays or pots of seedlings outside to slowly warm in the shade for two hours, but bring them inside at night. A cloudy day will also work well. Gradually add more outside time each day, gently introducing your plants to the sun. After a week or more of this, you can leave them out overnight if the temps stay at 50 degrees or above at night. Cover your plants if they're in the ground and a late-season frost sneaks back in.

Transplant Young Plants Into Their New Homes
By now, your plants have 3 or 4 real leaves — they'll look different from the miniature seedling leaves. When the ground is warm, and you're not expecting soaking rain, look into transplanting your big sprouts into their new outdoor home. These large seedlings that are ready to be planted can also be called "transplants" or sometimes "starts." In cases where you direct sowed, you may still want to shuffle plants around for the best sun and spacing. That's also a transplant situation, as is repotting plants into larger pots.

Protect Your Garden With Mulch
Finish your garden bed with compost and mulch. Mulch controls weeds and keeps your soil from drying out. Compost enriches the soil so your garden can grow even better. It may help foster stronger and larger plants that bear more fruit and flowers. Compost and mulch can be purchased in-store or created at home. The next time you're looking for "mulch near me," stop by the Garden Center to get the right amount.

Greet the Spring
Early spring is an exciting time in the world of gardening. Don't miss a minute of growing season. Plan your garden and landscaping, prepare to fertilize your lawn, and browse our garden center pages to find inspiration on which spring flowers to plant when the weather warms. Shop for the seeds, fertilizer, and soil you need in the aisles of your Parkville Garden Center, online, or on our mobile app. Let's get growing together.