With the mild wet Winter drawing to a close, Spring has come early this year. Some say that the daffodils are blooming two weeks early, but of course this depends on the variety and place. Full sun welcomes the early flowers, but in shady or exposed and windy parts of the garden, flowering is much later.
March is a time to start seed sowing in earnest and there is no time to delay if you want early border annual flower displays and tomatoes which ripen before late August! I’ve been sowing cosmos indoors, in peat free compost and was surprised to see small mushrooms also appear alongside the seedlings. A friend also had the same experience with the same compost brand. How common is this and does it harm the seedlings? Probably not, but I’ve emailed the compost supplier for comment.
Cosmos ‘Sonata’ Seedlings
Spring Flowers
Besides the ubiquitous daffodils, it’s nice to try out other Spring plants and bulbs. Last Autumn I visited Tring Garden Centre and bought half a dozen newly introduced primroses I’d not met before. Now in full bloom I’m rather struck by the way the brighten the shaded East border. Also, an old favourite of mine Anemone Blanda, is looking good. I bought a bag of 25 anemone tubers from a RHS plant fair in September for about £5, which is excellent value compared with buying the plants in flower at a garden centre.
Primrose ‘Grandiflora’
Primula rosea 'Grandiflora' (Himalayan primrose) has pink, yellow-eyed flowers which open as the bronze foliage appears and grows taller as the leaves get larger and turn green. Suitable for the shadier rock garden.
Anemone Blanda
Other jobs in March
Weeding, a ‘little and often’ is good advice. Hoeing young weeds and allowing them to shrivel, dry and die in the sunshine is much better than struggling later with bigger weeds such as deep rooted dandelions and creeping buttercups.
Give borders and fruit and vegetable beds a feed with organic feed. I use chicken manure pellets and fish, blood and bone with liquid seaweed or tomato feed for patio planters.
As the weather warms, towards the end of the month and into April, more hardy plant seeds such as broad beans and radish can be sown outdoors, as advised on the seed packets.
Finally Rare Plant Fairs If you are interested in buying a wider range of plants from traditional nurseries, I can recommend a visit to one of the Rare Plant Fairs These are held across the country but with local events at Water Perry Gardens, near Oxford on 12 June and Adwell House near Thame on 4 September. Details below.
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