March gardening tips

This year, Spring starts on 20^th March. The days will be getting longer and hopefully more sunny days will provide plenty of opportunities to get increasingly busy in your garden.

So, what should you think about doing?

• Once the soil has thawed and can be worked again, dig some compost or manure into beds to prepare them for the growing season.
• Put supports in place ready for the plants to grow up them.
• Resurface garden paths before everything grows.
• Cover prepared vegetable bed soil to keep it drier and warmer ready for planting.
• Feed and prune roses.
• Open up your greenhouse vents on sunny days.

• Deadhead daffodils
• Sow tomatoes, chillies, sweet peppers and aubergines in pots indoors
• You can start cutting your lawn again if it needs neatening up
• When the ground is warmer you can lay new turf
• Remove pond netting
• Clean patios
• Install water butts ready for the warming spring and summer weather
• Begin weeding in the later weeks of this month
• Put out bug boxes 

• Remove any wind damaged branches on trees and shrubs
• Replant potted indoor bulbs into the borders of your garden
• Plant strawberries in hanging baskets
• Sow parsnips – they need a long growing season
• Plant summer flowering bulbs, such as lilies, in pots or your borders
• Watch out for slugs

It’s a long to-do list, and by no means exhaustive. Getting ahead this month will help ensure a fruitful summer by getting your soil healthy and ready for planting. This will help you avoid weeds or any disease getting too established in your garden

What else are you going to be doing this month? Let us know what you’re up to this month.