St. Patrick’s Day is a good time to think about greening things up in the yard.

If green is the color of good luck shouldn’t we be doing everything we can to green up our lawns and gardens this year?! Who couldn’t use an extra bit of good luck?! Let’s think green. Let’s make our lawns and gardens happy, healthy, vibrant, and thriving green machines this spring. How do we do this? With 3 lucky charms…good soil, good food, and a good drink.

Lucky Charm #1 = Good Soil:

*pH is important to good soil. If it is too high, crops like potatoes will suffer. Too low, and your lawn will not be very green at all. Come to Van Wilgen’s and I can test it for free or head to the CT Agriculture Station for more comprehensive testing. I will tell you just how much Lime or Soil Acidifier your soil needs.

*Nutrients help your plants thrive. Incorporate a good compost into your exiting soil. Use Van Wilgen’s Premium Planting Mix for anything new you are going to plant this year or mix in a little Fafard Garden Manure Blend into your veggie garden. A little compost will give any crop a lot of good luck.

*Aeration will really give plant roots luck. If soil is compact, plants cannot thrive. Alleviate compaction by tilling up soil and adding amendments such as Peat Moss, Gypsum, and Green Sand. Don’t underestimate the bad luck of compact soil.

Lucky Charm #2 = Good Food:

*Fertilizer is crucial to producing green, healthy plants. We can help you pick the perfect fertilizer for every plant. Plants are big eaters. Don’t just feed them an appetizer. They want the whole St. Patrick’s Day feast. Trees and shrubs are hankering for some Espoma Plan-Tone and Holly-Tone. Perennial flowers would be so satisfied with some Van Wilgen’s All Purpose Slow Release Plant Food. Veggie gardens are hungry all the time. Feed them for plenty of good luck.

*Fertilizer for new plants is key to lucky establishment. Use Van Wilgen’s Jump Start or Root Boost for every new plant you put in the ground.

Lucky Charm #3 = A Good Drink:

*Water. Water brings luck to everyone and every plant. Make sure that is a moderate drought hits CT again this year, give your plants a good drink. The more they have to drink, the greener they will be!

For an extra good luck charm fuse Iron. Iron is the key to greening up the yellowest of plants naturally and stress free. Use it on everything. Encap’s Fast Acting Iron or Espoma’s Iron Tone are my favorite good luck charms for the lawn and garden this year!

SHOPPING LIST:

*Lime

*VW’s Premium Planting Mix

*Fafard Garden Manure

*Encap’s or Espoma’s Garden Gypsum

*Espoma’s Green Sand

*Espoma’s Plant or Holly Tone

*VW’s All Purpose Slow Release Plant Food

*VW’s Jump Start or Root Boost