Garden Center at Clifton Park #1269

Celebrate Springtime Gardening
On beautiful spring days, tidy the yard before everything blooms in earnest. You can also add beauty and interest with water features, hardscaping, and stonework. Don't forget to sweep the gazebo and clean out the shed in preparation for spring, too. No matter what outdoor projects you choose to tackle and which plants you need, you'll find that The Home Depot Garden Center in Clifton Park is the local plant nursery to help you enjoy your spring activities to the fullest.

Plant Hardiness Zones Explained
The first thing to 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. The plants that'll thrive in your area are in your zone — plus all the zones numbered less than that. In other words, a Zone 9 garden can support plants listed as Zones 1–9. The timeframe to direct sow outdoors in your garden is often around a month later than the indoor start date. Always read your seed packet for details. If you start plants later than recommended, it's not ideal, but it should even out as time passes.

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

Much of Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, southern New York state, and New Jersey 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, cucumbers, peppers, 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 in your own plant nursery. We've got all the seed starter supplies you'll need. For best results, you'll want warming lights or a warming mat to go with your seed tray or plant pots. If you're planting a larger garden, use seed trays — like the ones you see sprouts in at your Clifton Park Garden Center — to stay organized and plant tiny soil plugs when the time comes. You can also use pots with potting soil and seed starter mix.

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 toothpick or plant tag. That way, you'll know where your seeds should pop up. Otherwise, it'll be a surprise when the sprouts push out of the soil.

Sprouts
Prepare your seed sprouts for outdoor life while they're still indoors. These inch-tall micro-seedlings are fragile but resilient. Seedlings don't get all this pampering in nature when they volunteer and grow wherever they please, 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
Remember to harden your seedlings for best results when they're grown. On days above 45 degrees, take your pots or trays 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, incorporating a little sun to get your plants used to it. 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 when 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 you're not expecting soaking rain, and the ground is warm, look into transplanting your big sprouts into their new outdoor home. "Transplant" means that you put these small plants straight into pots or garden soil. 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 it all off with mulch and compost. Compost enriches the soil so your garden can grow even better. It may help foster larger and stronger plants that bear more fruit and flowers. Mulch controls weeds and keeps the soil moist. 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 perfect amount.

Greet the Spring
Early spring is an exciting time in the world of gardening. Plan your garden and landscaping, prepare to fertilize your lawn, and browse The Home Depot nursery to find inspiration on what to plant when the weather warms. For those without lawns, consider adding artificial grass or a pellet grill to your outdoor space. Shop for the fertilizer, seeds, and soil you need in the aisles of your Clifton Park Garden Center, online, or on our mobile app. Let's get growing together.