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March is here which means that spring will be officially upon us by the time the month is out. Hopefully, the worst of any bad weather is behind us, the sun makes more appearances and temperatures linger around double figures, helping us transition our gardens from a winter-proof area into a blossoming spring space.
March is typically the time to finish cutting back winter plants and tidying up your outdoor space before preparing seed & flowers beds and beginning to sow seeds. There is plenty of work to get stuck into ready to officially welcome spring to your garden.Â
This month’s tasks have been split into four categories, helping you break up your work or skip anything that may not be relevant to your space:
With spring arriving by the end of the month, all of your superb maintenance work over the past few months is going to start shining through. But now is not the time to let up with your efforts, complete the tasks below to ensure your outdoor space is perfect throughout spring and summer.
As with most job lists, not all of these tasks will be applicable to everyone, but they are generally appropriate to most UK gardens. From mowing your lawn to replanting your bulbs to buying a compost bin, a good percentage of these tasks will be suitable for your outdoor space.
It is recommended that you complete as many of these jobs as you can before continuing with the rest of our March garden chores. Your hard work will be more than worth it once the warmer weather returns!
Attract more wildlife by digging out a new pond or installing a water feature in your garden
Garden birds breeding season is soon to get underway, keep putting out food for them
Place bug boxes or bundles of hollow stems in sheltered corners so insects can lay their eggs
Around the new shoots of hostas and other susceptible perennials, put slug barrier products
Buy or build a new compost bin, ready to recycle your garden waste from the coming season’s
Mow your grass once it starts back into growth then re-cut the edges with a half-moon edging tool
Provide your blackcurrant bushes with a high-nitrogen feed
Check for & prune any wind-damaged branches on your trees & shrubs and prune
Check your tee aids. Ensure tree ties aren’t too tight and that stakes are still firmly anchored
Replant your indoor pots of bulbs into borders. Once the display is over, water well and apply liquid feed
Find & fork up emerging shoots of perennial weeds, such as ground elder and remove all of the roots
Chop down any winter-grown green manure and dig into your soil, to prepare the veg plot for sowing
Keep your winter-flowering jasmine in bounds and encourage flowers for next year by cutting them back
Your greenhouse has enabled you to grow throughout winter, now the temperatures are set to rise slightly you can begin forward planning. March is an incredibly exciting month for gardening, after finishing the last maintenance tasks, you can now start sowing and planting the more exciting flowers or crops you want to grow.Â
Removing winter items such as bubble insulation and letting in plenty of fresh air and light allows you to begin growing spring & summer plants that can’t withstand colder weather. Keeping your greenhouse at the right temperature and preventing humidity is incredibly important to give your new and existing plants the best conditions to grow.
Follow our list of jobs to ensure your garden structure is in the best condition to host your plants & crops:
Prevent overheating in your greenhouse by aiming to keep the air temperature at around 7 – 18°C
Prevent humidity from building up by opening greenhouse vents on sunny days
Once temperatures start to rise, take down bubble insulation in the greenhouse to let in more light
With hungry mice & pests around, protect your sowings of beans, peas, mangetouts & sweet peas
In a frost-free greenhouse or on a sunny windowsill, sow your sweet peas in deep pots
Be vigilant for houseplant and greenhouse pests such as mealy bugs and treat them immediately
Sow a few vibrant annual climbers such as black-eyed Susan (Thunbergia alata) or Spanish flag (Ipomoea lobata)
On a warm windowsill begin sowing coleus to enjoy their vibrant foliage indoors or in tropical-style displays outside
Sow young bedding plants in a heated propagator or buy good value ones for growing on to a larger size under glass
In a large pot, begin sowing dwarf French beans for an early indoor crop in June
For rooting in a pot indoors, take basal cuttings from perennials such as lupins & delphiniums
Give celeriac, celery, lettuces & parsley crops a great start indoors and later transplant into your garden
For fragrant flowers indoors in summer, plant freesia bulbs in pots of rich, loam-based compost
Overwintering cannas need potting up in fresh compost, watering & put in a warm spot to spur their growth
Take cuttings from the dahlia tubers you planted last month to raise new plants
Spring is almost here! This means you can actually begin planting more and more without the need for a greenhouse or insulating tools. From beginning to grow roses to sowing wildflowers, your planting now will ensure your garden soon starts to bloom.
Unlike last month, there are fewer maintenance type tasks before you can get your green fingers to work. Over the coming months, the work you undertake now will come to fruition and make the effort you have put in more than worth it.
Pick off developing seedheads on daffodils and other spring bulbs. Leave the foliage to die naturally
Continue to deadhead spring flowers and any winter bedding remaining so they don’t set seed
Tidy up alpines as they flower by removing dead foliage & mulch with grit to keep the foliage off damp soil
You should aim to have finished pruning all of your roses by early March
Willows, dogwoods, cotinus & paulownia need cutting down to the base to promote new growth
Scatter general-purpose fertiliser over roses, shrubs, hedges and flowerbeds
Using ericaceous fertiliser, feed your shrubs, such as rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias and pieris
Remove established and newly-germinating weeds, tidy up borders and mulch with garden compost
Check for aphids on tender new shoots and remove before infestations get out of hand
New roses, other shrubs & climbers should be planted now
In your garden plant faded forced bulbs for blooms next year
In pots and borders, plant lilies and other summer-flowering bulbs
Being to sow your hardy annuals outdoors including nasturtiums, California poppies and opium poppies
Native wildflower seeds are to be sown in trays or modules, to produce plants for your own mini-meadow
March is typically the month when things begin to really start happening for the growing season. We all begin to welcome the first signs of spring where we can begin planning for warmer weather and start planting a wide range of fruit and vegetables.
From potatoes, artichoke and onions to strawberries, fig trees and tomatoes, now really is the time for beginning to grow a variety of food from your garden or other outdoor space. It is advised that you let the weather guide you on the things you do plant unaided especially if it is too cold for that particular plant. However, if it is cold, but the weather is ‘reasonable’, you can begin early sowing or planting with the use of fleeces and cloches.
As soon as the weather warms up, begin hoeing your vegetable beds as weeds germinate quickly
With nitrogen-rich fertiliser such as pelleted chicken manure, feed your cabbages & other brassicas
Prevent carrot root fly by sowing all of your early crop of carrots under a fleece or cloches
To keep the fruit away from slugs, plant your strawberries in hanging baskets
Spaced around 30cm apart & at depth of 10-15cm, plant your Jerusalem artichoke tubers
For handy pickings, buy young herbs to plant in containers near your back door
Spaced 10-15cm apart, plant your onion and shallot sets, keep the bed free of weeds
To encourage fruiting and limit its overall size, plant a fig tree in a large container to restrict the roots
In well-drained soil or raised beds, in open sunny spots, plant bare-root asparagus crowns
In trenches of your vegetable plot or in large tubs, plant early potatoes
In pots indoors, sow tomatoes, chillies, sweet peppers and aubergines
Covered with a fleece or cloches, make the first outdoor sowings of hardy vegetables, such as spinach
When the soil begins to warm up, sow parsnips as they’re slow to germinate & need a long growing season
