What to plant in April in Florida

April is one of the busiest months for planting.  Not only can you catch up on March plantings that you might have missed, but you can also start many vegetables and fruits for your garden.

Fruits

In April, it’s time to plant any tropical fruits that you wish to harvest within the next few summers.  These include bananas and pineapple.  Other fruits to be planted now that can grow fruit this summer include blueberry, blackberry, watermelon, tangerine, cherries and grapefruit.

Vegetables

If you haven’t done so already, this is probably your last chance to start tomatoes, peppers, onions, squash and cucumbers from seeds.  However, if you’ve missed the deadline, it’s OK to wait a little and simply purchase seedlings or young plants to transplant into your garden through April or May.

You should also start cantaloupe, beans, spinach, southern peas, peanuts, okra, corn, carrots, and sweet potatoes.  Herbs, such as basil, oregano, dill, thyme and sage should be started in April.  Most people like to grow herbs in window boxes or containers.

Flowers

There are certain annuals that should be started in April.  These include:  hollycocks, marigolds, periwinkles, zinnias, phlox, salvias and impatiens.  Perennials bulbs such as lilies, irises, gladiolus, begonias, and caladiums should also be planted.

Grasses

For a lush green summer grass, you will want to sow grass seed varieties such as Bermuda grass, St. Augustine grass, Bahia grass and Centipede grass.  However, it’s important to only sow the seeds if you are able to water the grass for the next month or so.  Otherwise, the seeds may not take root.

Landscaping

If you haven’t already started working on your landscaping, April is the time to make that happen! Clear out old dead brush, remove old flowers, and fertilize existing flowers, trees and shrubs.

When it comes to landscaping, you have an almost unlimited amount of choices to make your yard beautiful.  You can plant certain types of palms, create butterfly gardens, or create low-water and low-maintenance yards.

When it comes to low-water yards, most people think this means that the yard must be full of rocks and sand.  However, creating a low-water yard really means that you plan your yard not only to consume less water, but also to be beautiful.  You choose plants that require minimal watering, use mulch to retain water, plan your fertilizer usage and group plants based upon their needs.