Garden Center at Pontiac #2701

On those beautiful days, clean up the yard before everything blooms in earnest. Lawn care is often a priority, as well. Plan your garden to make the most of your time and space. You can also add beauty and interest with hardscaping, stonework, and water features. No matter what outdoor projects you choose to tackle, The Home Depot Pontiac Garden Center can help you enjoy your spring activities to the fullest.

Plant Hardiness Zones Explained
The first thing to learn when planting veggies, 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 plant hardiness zone map and learn when to plant seeds.

For example, you could transplant bell peppers 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, and all the zones numbered less than that. In other words, a Zone 5 garden can support plants listed as Zones 1–5. The timeframe to direct sow outdoors in your garden is often around a month later than the indoor start date. Be sure to read your seed packet for details. If you start them later than recommended, it's not ideal, but it should even out as time passes.

Gardening in Your Growing Zone
The Midwest is mostly Zones 6 and 7 throughout Indiana, Michigan, and Kentucky. You’ll find pockets of Zone 5 and stretches of Zone 4 in the Upper Peninsula. In Zones 5 and 6, the outdoor growing season doesn’t begin here until mid-March or even April, although you can plant some veggie seeds halfway through February. Warmer Zone 7 can start planting earlier, and Zone 4 much later on. Tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, squash, and other classic garden crops will do well in this region, and most of them can get an early jump on growing indoors before spring really moves in.

Also, check out cruciferous veggies and certain herbs if you're ready to get planting. This includes broccoli, kale, and cabbage. Greens like spinach, artichokes, and fragrant herbs, including oregano, basil, and parsley, also don't mind an early start. The main concern is waiting until the frost has passed for the season, so planting seeds outdoors as direct sow is later here compared to farther south.

Start Seeds Indoors
Save money when you grow your garden from seeds by starting them indoors. We've got all the seed starter supplies you'll need. For best results, you'll want grow lights or a warming mat to go with your seed tray or planters. If you're planting a larger garden, use seed trays — like the ones you see sprouts in at your Pontiac Garden Center — to make it easy to stay organized and plant tiny soil plugs later. You can also use pots with seed starter mix and potting soil.

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 plant tag or toothpick. That way, you'll know where your seeds should pop up, and you'll know they're not weeds. 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 micro-seedlings are fragile — only an inch or so high, with the tiniest seedling leaf or two — but they're resilient. Seedlings certainly 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 floor fan on low to mimic the wind and strengthen their stems.

Harden Your Seedlings
Harden your seedlings for best results later. On days above 45 degrees, take your trays or pots of seedlings outside to slowly warm in the shade for two hours, but bring them inside at night. Cloudy days are fine, but no direct sunlight or harsh nighttime chills yet. After a week or more of this, you can leave them out overnight if the temps stay above 50 degrees. Cover your plants if they're in the ground and a late-season frost sneaks back in.

Transplant Young Plants Into Their New Homes
You've raised your baby plants from seeds, watched them sprout, and carefully hardened them off to brave Mother Nature. By now, your plants have 3 or 4 real leaves — they'll look different from the miniature seedling leaves. When the ground is warm, and you're not expecting soaking rain, 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 directly planted into the ground, you may still want to shuffle plants around for the best spacing and sun. That's also a transplant situation, as is repotting plants into larger pots.

Protect Your Garden With Mulch
Finish it off with compost and mulch. 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 your soil from drying out. 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 right amount.

Greet the Spring
Early spring is an exciting time in the world of gardening. Don't miss a minute of growing season. Prepare to fertilize your lawn, plan your garden and landscaping, and browse our garden center pages to find inspiration on which spring flowers to plant when the weather warms. Shop for the fertilizer, seeds, and soil you need in the aisles of your Pontiac Garden Center, online, or on our mobile app. Let's get growing together.