Welcome to our first garden tour of the year here in Zone 6A, Upstate New York. Spring is officially underway, and this is one of our favorite moments in the garden—when everything starts waking up… but not everything looks perfect yet.
And that’s kind of the point.
In this April garden tour, we’re sharing:
Let’s get into it.
Right now, the garden is all about layered color and contrast.
Our eastern redbud is stealing the show with that pinky-purple bloom, especially paired with:
This is exactly why we talk so much about designing for spring moments. Even before perennials fill in, you can create incredible impact with trees and shrubs.
One of the biggest strategies you’ll see repeated throughout our garden is this:
👉 Alliums + smooth hydrangeas
Here’s why it works:
It’s not just pretty—it’s practical.
This is one of those combinations that keeps your garden looking intentional instead of chaotic.
This year, we made some bold pruning decisions:
Yes, we’re sacrificing some blooms in places—but in exchange, we’re getting:
That’s always the trade-off.
If you have more questions about pruning, check out these blogs:
Let’s talk about it.
This winter was rough—and it shows.
We had:
And the garden reflects that.
But instead of overcorrecting, we’re doing what we always recommend:
👉 Wait, observe, and respond slowly
Last year, rabbits did serious damage to our roses.
So this fall, we tried something different—and it worked.
👉 We protected the base of our plants with vinyl coated chicken wire.
Why we like it:
And most importantly… it actually prevented damage this winter.
Deer pressure is always a concern here, especially coming from the street side of our property.
This year, we’re combining two approaches:
We moved our yard enforcer sprinklers to the front yard to stop deer before they even enter.
How they work:
So far? Very promising—and no need for smelly sprays (yet).
Despite the challenges, there’s a lot to be excited about:
We’re also seeing strong early growth in:
Spring is definitely happening.
We’ve already made some major updates:
And… there are a few big changes coming soon that we’re not quite ready to share yet.
(You’ll see them in the next tour 👀)
If there’s one takeaway from this tour, it’s this:
👉 Gardens are never “done”—and they’re never perfect.
April is messy.
And that’s completely normal.
This is the season where:
This is just the beginning of the season.
Over the next few months, you’ll see:
👉 Be sure to follow along for the next garden tour to see how everything develops.
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