Garden Center at Tatum & Bell #464

Spring Black Friday Is Back
The Home Depot Spring Black Friday sale is a great time to save on outdoor power equipment, lawn and garden supplies, and patio furniture. Spruce up your lawn with fertilizer, add fresh flowers to your garden, then relax outside to enjoy it all. This spring sale runs from April 4th to April 28th, so shop fast.


Gardening Sale for Mother's Day
Our Mother's Day Sale is the right time to help Mom upgrade her garden. We've got savings on popular brands of herb plants, small plants, and those details that make a garden special: garden decor, flower pots, and planters. If you're on the fence about the right present when searching for Mother's Day gifts, a gift card will always be appreciated. Shop The Home Depot Mother's Day Gardening Gifts Sale from May 2nd through May 12th in-store or on our mobile app.



On those beautiful days, clean up the yard before everything blooms in earnest. Lawn care is often a priority, as well. Planning your garden lets you make the most of your time and space. Remember to measure your garden so you can find fresh mulch near you as soon as it's available. No matter what outdoor projects you choose to tackle, The Garden Center in Tatum Bell can help you enjoy your spring activities to the fullest.

Plant Hardiness Zones Explained
The first thing you should know when planting spring flowers, veggies, and other seeds is your planting zone. Every location in the U.S. and its territories is sorted into blocks by climate. Find your zone on the USDA growing zone map and learn when to plant seeds.

For example, you could plant bell pepper seedlings 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. You can plant seeds indoors roughly a month before you can plant them outside, or direct sow. 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 diverse topography of this area means planting times vary widely. Desert areas are in Zones 7-10, depending on location, and areas with more elevation are in chillier Zones 4–6. Both deserts and mountains can have extreme conditions, so consider indoor gardening as a strong supplement to growing outdoors if possible.

In the desert, native plants like cacti, succulents, and other hardy desert shrubs will grow outside with ease. Other beloved garden vegetables love the heat, like nightshades. If you start them indoors and carefully introduce them outdoors in the shade, you can enjoy raising vegetables even in a dry climate. However, many flowers, both annuals and perennials, are sensitive to that much heat and sun, so research to find which varieties can handle the weather before planting outdoors.

Colder regions in Zones 6–8 should wait a little longer to plant, and all these zones need to wait an additional month before planting seeds outdoors rather than indoors. Mountainous regions in Zones 3 to 5 will have the shortest growing season, with seed starters going in later in the spring. Although the weather may vary, waiting until the frost has passed will give your seeds the best chance at a hearty and healthy life.

Check out certain herbs and cruciferous veggies if you’re ready to get planting. This includes cabbage, broccoli, and kale. Greens like spinach, artichokes, and fragrant herbs, including basil, parsley, and oregano, also don't mind an early beginning. In Zones 4–6, traditional garden vegetables like peppers of all kinds, cucumbers, and tomatoes are fine with an early spring or late winter start indoors under the grow lights.

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 planter pots. If you're planting a larger garden, use seed trays — like the ones you see sprouts in at your Tatum Bell Garden Center — to make it easy to stay organized and plant tiny soil plugs later. You can also use pots with potting soil and seed starter mix.

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. Otherwise, it'll be a surprise when the sprouts push out of the soil.

Sprouts
When your seeds have sprouted but aren't ready to go outside yet, you can still prepare them for outdoor life. These inch-tall micro-seedlings are fragile but resilient. Seedlings don't get all this pampering in nature, 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
When you're hardening your sprouts and gradually introducing them to the outdoors, be flexible. Keep an eye on your baby plants. If they're looking rough, don't push them. It’s ok to roll back a step or two if need be: Bring them inside overnight or put them in shady places instead of direct sun. As always, make sure they're watered enough. Take wilted plants inside and give them a good drink, making sure they're strong before returning them outdoors.

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 three or four true leaves — they'll look different from the miniature seedling leaves. When you're not expecting soaking rain, and the ground is warm, look into transplanting your small plants into their new outdoor home. These large seedlings that are ready to be planted can also be called "transplants" or "starts." 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 all 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 flowers and fruit. Mulch keeps your soil moist and controls weeds. Mulch and compost 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 perfect amount.

Greet the Spring
Early spring is an exciting time in the world of gardening. Don't miss a minute of growing season. Plan your garden and landscaping, prepare to fertilize your lawn, 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 Tatum Bell Garden Center, online, or on our mobile app. Let's get growing together.