We have arrived to early summer! Or, spring as most people call it. It’s warming up fast but the mornings and evenings are still cool. The trees are putting on new growth, with the first fruits of the year starting to bloom and ripen (mulberries, anyone??). Which means of course there’s pollen everywhere. Can’t have it all can we? There’s so much to be done in the garden this time of year, so without further ado, here’s what seeds to sow in April.
Growing conditions in April
The average daytime temperatures average in the low 80’s with the evenings being in the upper 50’s in central and north Florida, and the upper 60’s in south Florida.
The pests are well awake at this point, so make sure you have plenty of flowers blooming all throughout your garden to help bring in some natural pest control. Allow some of the weeds in your yard to flower as well, those native flowers help balance your gardens ecosystem.
The sun is strong, so provide afternoon shade for any plant that is not classified as a warm or hot weather crop. If you still have brassica’s growing, which is great, grow them under something tall such as pole beans or tomatoes. They will thrive in the shade of those plants.
The UV index is 10 for north and central Florida, and 11 in south Florida, with about ten hours of sunshine per day.
We are still in the dry season, so keep an eye on the plants and water when needed. Watering may need to become more frequent with the increased heat. Mulch your plants well and create soil with an abundance of organic matter to store water where your plants can access it.
What seeds to sow in April
Cucurbits
This category includes anything that is a cucumber, squash, pumpkin, melon or gourd. You have your pick here for whatever kind of cucurbit you love the most.
I highly recommend starting some luffa’s around this time of year since they will grow straight through the summer with reckless abandon. They’ll easily take over a space, so give them plenty of room and a trellis to grow up.
Seminole pumpkin in another one that will do great this time of year. It really takes off once the monsoons of summer get here though. They also love to climb. Feel free to sow these underneath a tree since they’ll be more than happy to climb right up its branches.
Winter squashes are less likely to deal with squash vine borers. Since those things are awake and hungry you might want to consider saving yourself the headache and heartache of an invested zucchini vine.
Your melons, summer squashes and cucumbers will have a shorter window of time here. They don’t love our summer weather, so get them started now. This will be the last time until September/October that you’ll be able to start them. Once May is here, it’s too hot and the monsoons will hit as soon as those babies mature.
Legumes
The best beans/peas to grow this time of year are those that will preform well throughout the summer. Yard long beans, asparagus peas, black eyes peas, and Puerto Rican Black beans, and peanuts are absolute stand outs during our summers.
They grow like champs, bringing in pollinators and beneficial insects and animals to help keep the pest pressure under control. Grow these up a trellis to save space, or grow them underneath a tall plant, like a sunflower, that they can climb up and eventually take over. You could also grow these up a fence. They make a great privacy screen with their thick foliage.
Corn
You can also use your corn plants as trellises for the young summer vegetables needing some trellising. Beans and squash are a wonderful parring with your corn.
Corn can preform well through the early parts of our summers, offering shade and structure to your other crops. It can easily get knocked over in a strong wind, though, so you might want to string them up for a little extra support ahead of monsoon season.
Sweet potatoes
Sweet potatoes are the easiest, lazy gardener friendly crop to grow. They’ll thrive even in moderate soil, although, they’ll need nutrients than straight sand will provide. Grow them in a sunny spot and allow them to take over.
Cut the vines back throughout their growth to promote larger spuds. The leaves are also edible and make a great substitute for spinach and lettuce during the summer. Young leaves are the most tender and mild.
Allow them to grow for six months or so before harvesting. Find more on how to grow sweet potatoes here.
Flowers and herbs
Marigold, calendula, sunflower, Jerusalem artichoke, roselle, basil, rosemary and chives are great to get started now. Marigolds, roselle, chives and basil will grow especially well throughout the whole summer.
There’s so many more flowers you can grow here, especially the native flowers. Coreopsis, echinacea, black eyed susans, blanket flower, blue mistflower and bidens alba to name a few.
If you have some brassica’s starting to bolt, allow them to flower, even if you don’t plan on collecting the seeds. Brassica blooms are a great nectar source for bees, they absolutely adore them.
For more on native Florida flowers visit flawildflower.org
What are some of your favorite seeds to sow in April? I’d love to hear what crops have been the most successful for you all. And of course let me know what I’ve missed.
There are so many seeds to sow in April, hopefully this brief list gives you a good idea of what to try in your garden now.
If you are new to gardening in Florida, check out my free Florida garden guide e-book and check out these other posts as well.
How to grow a garden that actually saves you money
How to be a successful Florida gardener
Top five best crops for Florida’s fall, winter, and spring
Top five best crops for Florida summers
Happy gardening!
Leave a Reply