Your March Garden – Spring Edition

1. Prune and bush and climbing roses
2. Plant onion sets and shallots
3. Plant summer-flowering bulbs
4. Lift and divide overgrown clumps of perennials
5. Plant early potatoes
6. If needed, mow the lawn on dry days
7. Cut back herbaceous perennials and ornamental grasses that have been left standing over winter
8. Keep a few Dandelions in your garden to help support pollinators
9. Start off Dahlia tubers in pots or trays of damp peat-free compost
10. Prune Buddleja to a low framework of stems to encourage new flowering growth

Sweet Peas can now be sown outside. Carry on deadheading winter-flowers and bedding. Pansies will continue into spring and maybe even summer if they are looked after.

Daffodils (Narcissus) will also need deadheading as they begin to fade.

Clean up any weedy areas in your beds before mulching. If you mulch with a deep layer of organic matter, this will help condition the soil.

Check your containers for drought. Although this time of year can be drizzly, they may still dry out if positioned under a cover. Simply check the compost at a hands depth, if the soil is dry, give it a water.

When the weather is finally mild enough and the grass is showing signs of growth, raise the mower blades by a 1/4inch higher, cut and enjoy that freshly mown grass smell.

Take the time to tidy up your lawns edges and border using an edging tool. An instant fix to create a beautifully presented garden.

In late March, apply a high nitrogen spring lawn feed if your grass needs some TLC. This will help promote strong growth to recover from the harsh winter weather.

It’s time to start feeding the fish! Little and often is best so not to have excess food and then unwanted algae blooms.

Remove leaf-catching netting covers placed over during autumn/winter season.

Tidy up any plants in the bog garden and mulch with composted bark.

Prune established bush and standard roses as they start growing but before any leaves unfurl.

Delay pruning spring-flowering shrubs until after they have flowered, otherwise this year’s display will be lost.

Remove any reverted green shoots on hardy variegated evergreens, to prevent reversion taking over.

Tie wall shrubs and climbers onto their supports to protect them from wind damage.