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Forty seventh edition -
March 2005
According to the forecasters this was to have been the mildest winter for fifteen years,
but the end of February saw heavy snowfalls and quite severe frosts, which
covered most of the UK... This seems to be a trend in recent
years, with spring blossom coming out early and bulbs about to flower, then suddenly
everything getting knocked back by severe weather.
Don`t worry though, plants are very resilient and will soon
pick up. If you have suffered with severe weather of any type, wait a
while to see if anything in your garden really has died before
removing it. Often just cutting out the dead and broken parts will
restore a shrub to its former glory. The one useful thing you can
do is knock snow off shrubs that are bending under the weight of it.. A soft
yardbrush is good for this job.
Jobs for March
Lawns
March - April are good months for sowing or laying new
lawns. Existing lawns should be swept and raked before mowing. I have
already lightly mown my lawn in January and February, more to
collect debris than shorten the grass, and this month I shall remove the
moss with an electric scarifier, which is an extremely satisfying job... I
use Greenthumb for lawn
treatment, but thought the scarifying process was something I could do
myself as we have an electric scarifier and the exercise is good for me!
Vegetables
 Continue to sow successional crops such as salads and
carrots. You don`t need a vegetable garden or allotment to enjoy home grown
vegetables as they can be grown in amongst the flowers as I said last month.
In fact it helps to keep the aphids and carrot fly away if you plant
vegetables amongst flowers such as marigolds, and I think it looks really
nice to see vegetables and salad stuff dotted around the borders. Later on
you could put a small wigwam of runner beans in.
Paths and walkways
Keep paths and walkways clear of debris and slippery algae.
If it is still icy, put down some salt to melt it, which will save you and
your visitors sliding all over the place, or worse, having a fall..
 Shrub borders and roses
Turn over the borders with a fork to freshen them up and let air in - as the
earth will have become compacted over winter - taking out any weeds at the
same time. Cut out any dead or twiggy wood from rose bushes and shrubs.
Prune roses and any shrubs that need it, early summer and later flowering
clematis hybrids, ornamental grape vines and wisteria, according to
instructions in your gardening book
Pruning
Prune early summer and later flowering Clematis hybrids.
Prune Wisterias and ornamental grape vines. Tidy up shrubs or trees that
have suffered damage in the windy weather. If you are in doubt about when to
prune certain shrubs and clematis, consult a gardening book for the
varieties you have.
Dogwoods should be
pruned hard back this month to get the benefit of the new colourful growth
next winter.
Wildlife
 The
birds are very busy this month pairing off and mating. If you are thinking
of placing new nesting boxes, make sure they face North so the sun doesn`t
shine in them. Clean out any old nesting boxes with a hand brush but not
disinfectant or water. I am wondering if the tiny wren will re-use the nest
she built last year. Whilst walking in the forest I have heard cuckoos and
woodpeckers and with the spring just around the corner I shall listen out
for them once again... The fox that travels through our garden each night is
a nuisance because he digs up the compost in all the ceramic tubs looking for the duck egg
he planted last year, as you can see on the left..
Paths, walls and fencing
Check over your boundary walls and fences for any wind or
subsidence damage.. A lick of paint on the
fence on a sunny day is very therapeutic and does wonders for freshening up
the faded panels.
Summer bedding plants
Start sowing seeds for your summer bedding plant displays.
Ensure they have the correct conditions stated on the packet - some
require a light covering of compost and no daylight, whilst others may
require no covering but plenty of daylight.. You will find too that some
seeds such as sweet peas and anemone corms need soaking in water for 24
hours before planting... Don`t overwater seeds and keep them warm enough.
These days I tend to cheat by buying pots of ready
germinated young seedlings from the garden centre, then pricking them out at
home..
Happy gardening.
 Thompson & Morgan
You
may obtain their free New 2005 Seed Catalogue by telephoning 01473 695224
and their website address is
www.thompson-morgan.com
where full information is available on their product varieties and orders
can be taken on-line.
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The National Botanic Garden of Wales
