April gardening jobs

Tips and advice on garden care in April

April brings with it longer days and occasionally mild, sunny weather. Daffodils are springing up all around, and trees are covered in blossom. The colder chill of winter has passed, and spring is in full swing. It's time to enjoy that gentle sunshine, so read on for our top tips on gardening in April.

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What to do in your garden in April
Grow your own
- How to grow chives

April Focus: Growing vegetables

Growing your own produce is one of the most rewarding things to do in your outdoor space. And with its longer, lighter days, April is the best time to start your ‘grow your own’ project. This time of year is best for planning ahead. Get sowing all of your favourite Christmas vegetables such as parsnips, leeks and of course Brussels sprouts. At B&Q our selection of vegetable seeds covers a whole range, so you'll always find something, no matter how much space or time you have.

Take a look at our guides to help you with all your growing projects, full of great advice from when to plant to how to look after them.

How to grow your own chives

Chives are a low maintenance, easy to grow herb that you can use to brighten up a lot of different dishes. Take a look at our video guide below and get all the tips you need.

Gardening jobs for April

General April garden tasks

Spring clean borders, keep on top of weeding and hoeing
Feed roses, borders, hedges, trees, shrubs and spring bulbs with general purpose fertiliser
Mulch borders with compost from the compost bin. This will not only lock in moisture and give plants a feed, but it will also help to improve the soil
If you've not got one already, install a water butt to harvest rainwater from roofs, including the greenhouse, ready for the summer ahead.

Outdoor paint projects

Paint the outside of your home. Now is the perfect time of the year to give your exterior walls a fresh lick of paint. Touch up any scuffs with our range of masonry paint.
Spruce up your front door with some exterior door paint. Late April is a great time of the year to paint your front door. Start in the morning, and your door should be dry by evening. Need some advice? Check out our step-by-step guide on painting a front door.
Upcycle garden furniture. Getting a bit tired of your outdoor seating? Why not use our exterior woodcare to give your wooden garden furniture a new lease of life? Choose from a range of bold colours.
Touch up your shed or fence panels with exterior shed and fence paint. Your fence panels and shed might be looking a little worse for wear after battling the harsh elements throughout winter. Check out article for a handy guide on painting a wooden shed and give your garden a refresh.

Vegetables and herbs

Sow broad beans, summer cabbage, Brussel sprouts, early peas, summer/autumn cauliflower, sprouting broccoli, leeks, beetroot, radish, spring onion, lettuce, rocket, turnip, spinach, parsnips, carrot and onion
Plant first early, second early and maincrop potatoes. Earth up shoots of early potatoes to protect them from frost with garden canes and netting
Look after your veg - water and hoe regularly, thin out and transplant seedlings, and give support to peas and beans sown earlier
Sow hardy herbs like parsley, coriander, fennel, dill and marjoram

Fruit

Plant out strawberry plants into soil enriched with well-rotten manure
Feed blackcurrants, blackberries, and hybrid berries

Under cover

Ventilate the greenhouse on sunny days, but shut it down mid-afternoon to retain the heat at night
Towards the end of the month, start hardening off bedding plants and frost-tender vegetables grown indoors by standing them outside on fine days
Prick out, and thin out seedlings
Sow frost-tender vegetables like cucumbers, sweetcorn, French and runner beans, marrows, pumpkins, squashes and courgettes, for planting outdoors later in a room temperature indoor environment.
Sow tomato seeds

Ponds

Spring clean the pond with a pond net or blanket weed brush
Divide overgrown plants and put in new water plants
Towards the end of the month start feeding your fish

Lawns

In warmer conditions, feed grass with a lawn feed to help to encourage spring growth
Scarify patches of moss and remove weeds. If you have a large lawn that needs work, use a moss and weed killer and re-seed any bare patches.
Sow grass seed to make a new lawn if you can’t wait until autumn
Mow lawns at least once a fortnight or once a week in really mild weather
When growing daffodils in grass, mow around patches of the bulbs

Trees, shrubs and climbers

Plant or move evergreen trees and shrubs
Feed acid-loving plants such as rhododendrons
Continue planting pot-grown woody plants
Use a hedge trimmer to tidy up hedges and clip if necessary - although it’s usually best to leave this until next
month (always check there are no birds nesting first)
Plant pot-grown evergreens for hedges

Flowers

Wait for six weeks after flowers of spring bulbs are over before cutting the foliage down
Continue to plant perennials and finish dividing and replanting summer flowering perennials
Plant out hardy annuals sown inside in autumn
Continue to sow hardy annuals outside
Remove any horticultural fleece from borderline-hardy plants

Patios and containers

Plant spring bedding and summer bulbs in pots
Plant compact trees, shrubs, and evergreens in pots
Plant up hanging baskets with spring bedding

April garden project: Create a bird friendly garden

A few quick and easy considerations in your garden design can help invite all sort of birds into the garden. Read our guide for top tips and ideas to help attract more feathered guests to visit your home.