Tina Woodhams Gardening Notes For March
Spring arrives in a flurry of blossom and daffodils! With the longer daylight hours, it is time to sow and transplant flowers and vegetables and prepare borders. At this time of year, the greenhouse is a hive of activity – if you haven’t much space to grow indoors, it may pay to wait for a few more weeks before starting sowing. Consider investing in a covered area, however small, as it will give you a head start!
With the snowdrops now finished, lift and divide any larger congested clumps to replant around the garden. Left to multiply, this will lead to reduced flowering in future years. Carefully dig the bulbs out of the ground with all greenery still attached, then tease the clumps apart and replant a few centimetres apart and at the same depth as before. Remove any seed heads from early-flowering daffodils and other spring bulbs, leaving the foliage to die back naturally. Any faded indoor bulbs may be planted into the borders for flowering next year.
Start to prepare your flower borders to sow and plant hardy annuals for colour throughout the year. Begin by digging the ground, removing any weeds and garden debris and then raking over to ensure the ground is level. Adding mulch such as garden compost or well-rotted manure will help to improve water retention and maintain nutrient levels in the soil.
Young bedding plants will now be available, so purchase some and grow on under cover until they are ready to be planted outside. If you have overwintered plants in the greenhouse, check the leaves for signs of mould and remove any damaged foliage to prevent disease.
In the vegetable garden, plant onion and shallot sets and sow spinach, remembering to cover with a cloche as the risk of frost is still a possibility! If you have already purchased your early seed potatoes and they have been chitting (left in a light area to sprout), these can be planted towards the end of the month, either in trenches or in pots if space is limited.
As the weather warms up, we all start to emerge outdoors again – along with the garden pests! Slugs and snails, aphids and the menacing box moth will all make an appearance, so be vigilant and take all necessary precautions to limit damage.
“March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb”; strong winds are traditionally a feature of our spring climate, take time now to re-check tree ties and supports on climbers and wall shrubs.
Happy gardening!