Your organic garden will need a jumpstart. Organic gardening relies entirely on the release of nutrients from the decomposition of organic matter and the bodies of the microorganisms that digest the organic matter in the soil. In cold soils, nutrients are not readily available.

Anne Arundel County blooms with the help of Unity Gardens twice a year. This non-profit organization raises money to helps community groups with twice-yearly grants to green their spaces. The new cycle to apply for grants up to $1,000 runs from July 1 through August 31. So act now or wait until January.

On a farm in St. Margaret’s, land that had been in sod has sprouted raised beds for a new community garden. The one-half-acre space gets full sun, has good fencing to keep out the deer and plenty of water. Thanks to the dedication of the farmers and members of Grow Annapolis, those with shade-bound yards now have a place to go — not just to raise food, but also to make new friends. And the Seznec family, which owns and runs Hollywood Farm, benefits from the added diversity the garden brings.

If you were wise enough some years back to plant asparagus, you’ve been rewarded with a spring feast. Now it’s time to give your asparagus bed a rest to ensure future harvests.     An asparagus bed planted in full sun in well-prepared and well-drained soil can remain productive for 20 years or more — if you treat it well.

For more abundant flowers on your rhododendrons and mountain laurels next year, deadhead this year’s flowers as soon as they wilt. By preventing the flowers from setting seeds, you’ll stimulate the branches to flush new growth from waiting latent buds. This is especially true if the bushes are growing in full sun.  

The winter of 2013-2014 was so severe that it killed fig trees back to the ground. Many plants also suffered severe rabbit damage at the base of the young stems with smooth bark. Rabbits eat the smooth brown bark at times when other food sources are scarce.   As we are located at the northern climatic range for growing figs, we need to anticipate winter damage at least once every 10 to 15 years. According to my records, the last time fig plants were killed back to the ground was during the winter of 1997-1998.

While azaleas were blooming mid-month, I passed a home in the Deale area where the bushes were so large that it must have been impossible to look out through the lower part of the front windows. They must have been sheared at some point because the middle of the plants appeared very bushy.     This is a common problem and one that is simple to correct — once you get out the pruners and get past fear. 

As years pass, clumps of daffodils, narcissus, jonquils and hyacinths become crowded, resulting in smaller flowers. Shrunken flowers mean it’s time to dig and replant. Wait until after all of the foliage has died back to the ground.       Mark the location and flower color of clumps to be divided before all the foliage is gone. Make a large plant label and stick it in the middle of the clump.

Asparagus is a vegetable that’s good looking enough to be planted in the flower garden. The foliage makes an excellent garden backdrop or can be used in sunny beds to give light shade to flowers that prefer partial shade.  I remember a flower garden where asparagus provided shade for an under-story planting of impatients and verbena. The effect was most attractive as the asparagus foliage created the impression of looking through a light fog.

The better you control weeds in the garden this year, the fewer weeds you will have next year. Weeds have the capacity of generating thousands of seeds, which means that many seeds scattered on the ground this year will be germinating next year. Not all of the seeds will germinate at once. Many hard seeds can remain in the ground for years, especially if they get buried.       Frequent light cultivation while the weed seedlings are small is the best method of control — providing you have the time.