As a gardener, at the start of the New Year comes the hope of a fresh garden season.

With a little planning and preparation before the daylight hours lengthen and the soil temperatures warm up, we can set ourselves up for a more productive garden season.

Here are some helpful tips to consider.

• Clean and sharpen tools: Before you start working on your garden, ensure that your tools are thoroughly cleaned and sterilized. This will help prevent the spread of disease and ensure that your tools are in good condition. You can use a solution of 10 percent bleach to 90 percent water to disinfect your tools. Once you’ve disinfected your tools make sure you rinse them off with water, dry them, and oil them so that they won’t rust.

• Prepare your soil: Spring is a good time to grab that soil sample if you haven’t done that in a few years. You can do that by simply grabbing a few scoops of soil from 4-5 different areas in your garden, mixing the soil in a clean bucket, and then putting a scoop of the mixed soil in a baggie and taking it into the local extension office. The folks there can help you fill out the form and get the sample sent off for analysis and you will get a detailed report with recommendations on soil amendments. Early spring is the ideal time to add soil nutrients, and compost, ensure that the soil is not compacted, and remove any stray weeds left over from last year.

• Plan your garden: Spring garden planning includes flipping through seed catalogs; choosing which plants you’d like to grow; taking inventory of what, if any, seeds you have on hand already and ordering any that you may need; mapping out a garden layout; and creating a planting schedule for your garden to ensure a succession of plants throughout the season. A good tool to use is the “vegetable planting calendar” (Publication No. G6201) on the MU Extension website, or you can visit your local extension office for a copy. This calendar has plant dates, seeding dates, and tested varieties of vegetables that perform and produce well in Missouri.

• Tidy up: Go ahead and remove any debris, dead leaves, and other materials that have accumulated over the winter months in your vegetable garden. This will help prevent the spread of disease and unwanted pests. Burn any diseased plant material to prevent the spread of disease this season.

I hope these tips help you prepare your garden for the upcoming season, and if you have any questions regarding your spring garden, please reach out to the MU Extension or your local Barry County Master Gardener.

Angela Brattin is a member of the Barry County Master Gardeners. She may be reached at ang.brattin@gmail.com.