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What To Do In The Garden In March

March 14, 2018 By Jill Anderson 5 Comments

 

What To Do In The Garden In March- orange tulip flowers growing in grasses-Tulip Princess Irene-

I’m not a natural list maker, I have to fight the urge to just get on & do things, but, when I’ve made one, I immediately feel organised. They’ve become essential for gardening because it’s so maddening when you forget something … & have to wait until next year.

Realistically, more than one list is necessary right now, vegetable seeds to sow, flower seeds to sow, dahlias to order, the latter needs swift action before all the choice ones are gone, but let’s just concentrate for now on what to do in the garden in March. There are exciting times ahead!

What To Do In The Garden In March- apricot roses

It’s the perfect time to prune roses:

First remove stems that are crossing other, so they don’t rub each other & wound the stem, then cut out dead, diseased & dying stems, they’re darker in colour. a mulch of well rotted compost around the base of the plant will help, keep it away from the stem though.

Weeding:

I spent a satisfying half hour in the garden last week pulling up weeds, I find the monotony has a nice, calming effect. Weeds are relatively small, at this stage, making the job easier. Leave it a few weeks & they’ll spread rapidly, grow bigger & take twice as long to remove.

Seed Sowing:

This is the month to sow seeds of hardy annuals under cover, greenhouse or windowsill will do nicely, or outside in sheltered places. Then sit back & imagine all these little specks of promise turning into food & flowers!

a variety of seeds on a table

courgette plant in a small plant pot

a baby courgette plant

Summer bulbs:

Plant lilies now, can I recommend the sweetly scented Madonna ones, & gladioli, I’m a big fan of the lime-green ones, now.

Cornus:

Cut back the colourful stems to a couple of inches above ground, new growth of more vividly coloured new stems will shoot up. I cut half the stems on my Cornus as they’re only a couple of years old, bit you can be more ruthless with older shrubs & cut them all down.

Cornus alba Midwinter Fire shrub

Cornus alba ‘Midwinter Fire’ growing at Wisley Gardens.

Grasses:

Cut back deciduous grasses, e.g. Calamagrostis Karl Foerster, to just above the base, where fresh, new growth is probably starting now. Grasses are such great plants for adding texture & movement  to perennial planting.

Feeding your garden:

spread poultry manure pellets around shrubs & permanent planting, use them in your allotment or vegetable patch too. Their big advantage is they don’t contain chemicals & they release their nutrients slowly, so growth is steady, rather than rapid, soft growth produced by chemical fertiliser, that’s loved by slugs & snails.

Mulching with well-rotted manure, home-made compost or similar, will repay dividends ovrr the next few months. Four inches thick on damp soil is the ideal.

In The Vegetable Garden

winter squash plants growing in raised wooden beds

winter squash growing last year

It’s still cold at night for most seeds to be sown, but these are ones that will germinate at low temperatures. Cover the soil to warm it a few days before sowing, to make things easier for them:

parsnips

peas

leeks

spinach

broad beans

Sow just a few & see how they go.

purple podded peas-

purple-podded peas

raised vegetable beds, purple morning glory flowers growing up post-

my little vegetable garden last summer

I had a delivery of plants in a huge cardboard box, so I’ve used that to cover 2 of my raised beds. The cardboard will get ripped up for the compost bin when it’s done its job warming beds.

Plant bare-root fruit trees & bushes:

They won’t be dormant next month, so it’ll be too late

Plant first early potatoes:

Many gardeners start them off indoors, encouraging shoots to grow, but don’t give up if you haven’t got round to this, plant some this month & they’ll soon catch up.

Prune gooseberries, blackcurrants & autumn raspberries:

This is to encourage more fruit & less disease. Cut out any dead, diseased or dying stems, then cut back half the stems by a quarter of their length, shorten the remaining stems leaving 4 buds.

What To Do In The Garden In March- Hinnomaki gooseberries

Hinnomaki gooseberries

Garlic:

The last chance for planting to harvest this year. It’s on my list for this month, I know home grown will be organic & there’s choice of different types. Although it’s easy to buy in the supermarket, a lot is imported from China & that’s a lot of air miles.

What To Do In The Garden In March- garlic bulbs for planting

Enjoy your garden or allotment in March, there’s lots to do but you’re accompanied by birdsong now.

Jill

all photos: Jill Anderson.

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Filed Under: Blog, Gardening, Growing Food, Plants, Recycling & Sustainability

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Comments

  1. Linda Casper says

    March 15, 2018 at 11:47 am

    A helpful list, thanks. Unfortunately the very wet and cold weather is not helping me tick them off and not a lot of room left on kitchen windowsill.

    Reply
    • Jill Anderson says

      March 19, 2018 at 4:43 pm

      Hi Linda, this wintery weather has put everything on hold, but the sun is out today & warmer temperatures are on the way. I’m hoping to sow seeds later this week. Hope you manage to get on with your list!
      Jill

      Reply
  2. julie Quinn says

    March 15, 2018 at 8:59 pm

    Your photos are beautiful and although I don’t grow edibles myself, your blog has lots of advice for things to do now – so I’m into the garden tomorrow, weather permitting.

    Reply
    • Jill Anderson says

      March 19, 2018 at 4:45 pm

      Hi Julie, Thank you! I hope you got into the garden.
      I’ve made little forays, but will be pleased when the weather allows more!
      Jill

      Reply
    • Jill Anderson says

      April 11, 2018 at 3:49 pm

      Hi Julie, do hope this was useful for you….sorry for delayed reply, has been so busy, back on track now!

      Reply

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Hello, I’m Jill Anderson.
This is where you’ll find good, solid information about gardening, growing fruit & vegetables and how to keep it all looking good.
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The healing, calming power of nature in one photo. The healing, calming power of nature in one photo.
These wonderful autumn colours won’t be around for much longer. But that’s ok, because now is what matters, & their fleeting beauty makes them even more precious.
It’s easy to see how being among trees & nature is so beneficial for our health & wellbeing. 
Have a great Sunday.
Savouring all the autumn colour, & doesn’t it lo Savouring all the autumn colour, & doesn’t it look spectacular with this bold front door.
Today has been hard work, after a lovely time last week in Norfolk. The north coast there is spectacular. Realising these last few months, that there are so many beautiful places here. 
Have a nice evening.
Charming glasshouse at Houghton Hall, Norfolk. Vis Charming glasshouse at Houghton Hall, Norfolk. Visiting to see the Anish Kapoor sculptures, which are amazing, but unprepared for the beauty of the grounds & garden. 
Such a treat, worth coming to Norfolk for this alone!
Hope you’re keeping well, & managing to smile some of the time. x
P.S. more of Houghton Hall & Anish Kapoor on my stories
We stopped off on the way home to pick blackberrie We stopped off on the way home to pick blackberries, after coffee & cake, sitting in the churchyard - the cafe was full, & the churchyard is a quiet, peaceful spot..... as you’d expect.
-
One little advantage of lockdown is walking so much more, rather than using the car. Though it shouldn’t have taken something as momentous as this, for me to change bad habits 🙁
Hope you’re weekend is going well.
My hazel arch, a bit lopsided 🙄 using wood from My hazel arch, a bit lopsided 🙄 using wood from a random clump of hazel on the garden. Now looking much better covered in winter squash plants, so you can’t see just how ramshackle it is. I like to think it has a certain home-spun charm .

Great for small space gardening, imagine how much room you need to grow these without vertical supports.

I’ve got 2 Uchiki kuri, lovely nutty flavour.
1 Turks turban, for its flamboyant shape & colours, though it also tastes good.
One unknown, grown by my grandsons in their homeschooled science lesson.
Close-ups of the squash over on my stories.
Stay cool my friends x
I wanted to show you this lovely lily ( Lilium reg I wanted to show you this lovely lily ( Lilium regale) which is flowering right outside our bedroom window. 
It gets sun for about 4 hours only, you can order the bulbs now for planting in September. It’ll reappear every year & waft delicious scent around your garden, or through your windows.
Have a very happy Monday x
It’s British Flower Week, there’s a lot to be It’s British Flower Week, there’s a lot to be said for fabulous seasonal flowers that haven’t travelled thousands of miles ...... & are wonderful for biodiversity
A bit of rain, nice long days (it’s almost mid-s A bit of rain, nice long days (it’s almost mid-summer!) & it’s, mostly, all growing nicely.

Spinach, courgettes & garlic in shot here. 
Enjoy the rest of your Sunday x
Hope is a decision I’ve thought long & hard abou Hope is a decision
I’ve thought long & hard about how to view the tumult in the world we’re living in now. 
The only thing that works for me, is to choose hope.

It’s a tall order, but avoiding mainstream news & speculation helps avoid the anxiety, that’s often waiting in the wings.

One day soon there’ll be grandchildren clambering over this again.
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