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Edition Twelve - March 2007
Wildlife and plants might be quite confused with the recent weather we've been having, which included snow and unseasonably warm sunshine.. However, you don't need to worry about garden plants as they'll find their own level and all but the tenderest will survive the worst conditions..
March marks the start of the gardener's eight month active season. In general, now is the final chance before the autumn to plant shrubs, ornamental and fruit trees..
Some more new releases from Thompson and Morgan, seed specialists:-
- Largest flowered Thunbergia from seed
- Sweetest Lettuce challenge or your money back
- Teeni Beanie Runner Beans
Jobs for the month - March
Bulbs
Plant lilies in pots for placing around the garden and patio areas in the summer. Take indoor hyacinths, daffs and tulips that have finished flowering into a spare room or light airy shed and cut off the flower stems at the base. Continue watering them very sparingly until the foliage has died down, then plant them into the garden..
At the end of this month you can plant gladioli corms directly into the garden
Greenhouse
Start overwintered begonia tubers into growth in trays of compost, keeping them barely moist..
You can still take cuttings of geraniums (pelargoniums) this month, using young shoots about 4" long.. And Fuschia cuttings, using young shoots about 2" long..
Your greenhouse will need to be heated gently, especially if you have started growing bedding plants from seed.
Houseplants
By now your houseplants will be making considerable new growth and it is a good time to give them a thorough overhaul as follows:-
- Check the plants are free of disease or resident pests, and treat if necessary.
- Prune any dead wood out.
- Check their roots and if potbound re-pot them into bigger containers, using a good quality houseplant compost and adding slow release fertiliser in either tablet or granular form. I use Miracle-Gro
- Clean the leaves with a misting spray or damp cloth, depending on the type of leaves. (For hairy leaved small plants, use a soft pastry brush to clean the leaves.)
- Keep out of draughts and don't over water
Trees and shrubs
You can continue planting shrubs this month.. Prune existing shrubs, especially dogwoods that are grown specifically for their winter bark. Tidy borders by giving them a light going over with a hoe or fork and add mulch or bark if required.. It is more practical to spread bark on top of weed suppressing membrane to avoid it getting washed into the earth by the weather.
Ponds
March is a good month for cleaning, repairing or making your pond safe for young children. Take care not to disturb frogs if they've got a head start with their mating and put any fish into large containers filled with the existing pond water. If you have a large pond to clean out vacuums can be hired or bought. Pond plants can be re-potted this month, using aquatic compost in open containers, with a final covering of gravel to stop the compost from floating away, or being disturbed by the fish..
Lawns
An
application of lawn Weed and feed can be applied from April - September,
but if the weather is suitable during March you can prepare the lawn by
scarifying it, either with a rake or an electric scarifier specifically
for this purpose. This will rid the lawn of any moss and dead stuff (thatch)
that has built up over time and allow the lawn to 'breathe' again.
Lawn edges can be cut this month which will set off your lawn nicely. I think ragged edges spoil even the most manicured of lawns!
Happy gardening till next month....
Tickets for RHS members
Privilege rate tickets are available for RHS members to all RHS shows,
but tickets must be booked in advance. Click on the individual show links
below for further information.
RHS members are not charged a booking fee for tickets purchased except
for advanced tickets to the Malvern shows. To
find out how to become an RHS member click here
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Some web sites of interest to gardeners:
The living theatre of plants
and people
The Eden Project is a gateway into the world of plants and people.
A meeting place for all to discover how we depend on plants and how we
can help to manage and conserve them for our mutual survival.
Gardening
is an important part of many people's lives. You don't have to give up
gardening because of accident or illness, the onset of disability or the
problems associated with growing older. The information on their website
is designed to provide you with the information to Carry on Gardening.
Carry on Gardening was initiated by the horticultural charity Thrive
and is funded by the National
Lottery Charities Board. It brings together information
on easy ways of gardening gathered over 23 years by Thrive and research
carried out since the early 1970s by Mary Marlborough Centre, Oxford,
on tools and equipment for disabled and older people.
www.alantitchmarsh.com Alan Titchmarsh MBE, TV gardener, writer, broadcaster and
thoroughly nice person. Just a few choice words to describe the peoples`
favourite TV gardener. See his website....
Thompson
and Morgan
A growing resource for gardeners worldwide. The site includes
the international online seed catalogues, the young plants catalogue (UK
only), the wholesale seeds catalogue, together with the award winning
Germination Times and a host of other useful information.
********************
And some reading material:-
"The Yellow Book 2006" contains information of all Gardens of England
and Wales open for charity, from National Gardens Scheme and is available
from all good bookstores throughout the UK priced £7.99. http://www.ngs.org.uk/yellow_book.htm
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