April is the time for several tasks in your garden.

After the Lehigh Valley’s near record-breaking snow-filled February, a colorful garden display is a welcome sight.

February 2021, with 39.6 in. of snow, was second to February 2010, with 42.9 in.

The Jan. 31-Feb. 2, 2021, blizzard, with 26.9 in., was second to the Jan. 23-25, 2016, blizzard, with 31.9 in.

The pansy’s cheerful appearance and sweet, subtle scent belie its ability to survive spring freezes, fall cold snaps and even mild winters.

From an original color palette of yellow and purple, pansies are available in every color of the rainbow, and many feature multi-colored blooms.

Pansies, popular as a bedding and container plant, are perennials with biennial tendencies that are usually treated as annuals.

Beginning gardeners will find pansies easy to grow. Pansies prefer well-drained soil, rich in organic matter, such as compost. They can be grown in full sun to part shade.

If pansies are in a container, consider moving them from sun to part shade as the temperatures increase in the spring. Very few pests and diseases bother pansies. Slugs pose the greatest threat.

Pansies do not need intense applications of fertilizer, but benefit from a slow-release fertilizer or application of a general fertilizer every few weeks, especially if they are grown in a container. Deadheading helps increase bloom.

Pansies are readily available at garden centers. Enjoy the many color combinations and consider pairing pansies with other cool-loving plants such as ornamental kale (Brassica oleracea) or sweet alyssum (Lobularia maritima). Go plant some pansies. Let the colors begin.

Garden soil

If you haven’t already done so, prepare your garden soil. Remove dead plants and debris, remove weeds, top with one-inch compost or till in cover crops-composted manures.

Do not plow, till or spade soil until it is dry enough. If a lump of soil squeezed in your hand does not fall apart, it is too wet to work.

Asparagus beds should be topped with fertilizer or compost. Asparagus grows best in a sandy loam. Set the plants 1 to 1-1/2 to 2-feet apart in rows 4-feet apart.

Plant potatoes, peas, beets, turnips, radishes, carrots, spinach and other leafy greens. Seedlings of previously-planted carrots, beets, and lettuce should be thinned.

Transplant cabbage, broccoli, lettuce and cauliflower plants into the garden.

Transplant strawberries so that the crowns are even with the surface.

Fertilize blueberries, rhododendrons, azaleas and most broadleaved evergreens with ammonium sulfate.

Top-dress the lawn with compost, fill in low spots, and re-seed.

Dig up clumps of hosta to be divided, and replant.

Tie up ornamental grasses (for easy removal) and cut back to a few inches above ground level.

Dig, divide and replant perennials, such as helenium, fall asters, Shasta daisies, chrysanthemums and phlox.

Sow seeds of sweet peas, bachelor’s buttons and larkspur in flowerbeds.

Apply lime around lilacs and clematis, cultivating it into the soil.

Mulch flower and landscape beds. To prevent weed seeds from sprouting, put down wet newspaper, overlapping edges underneath the mulch.

Toward the end of April, plant a few gladioluses and continue every couple of weeks until early July to have a continuous display.

“Growing Green” is contributed by Lehigh County Extension Office Staff and Master Gardeners. Information: Lehigh County Extension Office, 610-391-9840; Northampton County Extension Office, 610-813-6613.