Gardening Jobs for March

March is an important month to prepare your soil and lawn ready for the long hot (if we're lucky!) Summer months. Its also the perfect opportunity to tidy up the lawn, prune shrubs and bushes and even sow vegetables and early potatoes for the kitchen garden. Here we've given a few quick hints and tips to get you started. And dont forget to keep taking a look at Medwyn's blog to see what he's up to this week!

Soil Improvement

Soil will lose moisture quickly as the weather dries out if left exposed. Weed and then mulch with a thick layer of organic matter to retain the moisture. This will also reduce the need to water. Pay particular attention to new shrubs and trees, the mulch will preserve their water supply but also keep the weeds at bay. Well-rotted farmyard manure, garden compost, cocoa shells, chipped bark or even spent mushroom compost will all do the trick.

Handy Hint!
Never mulch over dry soil, water it first as mulch will keep water out as well as in.

Plant Containers

Small trees, climbers, shrubs and roses look fantastic on the patio in containers. Plant them in a soil based compost such as John Innes No.3 (this will retain moisture and nutrientsmuch better than general purpose equivalents, and reduce the need for watering). If planting roses, prune to encourage growth.

Handy Hint!
Move pots containing roses into the shade to prevent scorching if the sunshine arrives!

Get the lawn tidy

The grass is starting to grow once again so its time to get the mower out and atart mowing regularly (this will keep it green and healthy). Reseed bare patches by roughening the surface and mixing and sowing grass seed with a potting compost in equal proportions.

Sow your Kitchen Garden

Seed sowing outside can now begin, although in Northern parts its better to wait until late March or early April. Lettuce, radish, salad onions, peas, beans, cabbage turnips and beetroot can be sown now and if planted at intervals, will provide a succession of crops throughout the Summer. Early potatoes can also go idown in late March. If youre short on space in the garden, why not try the Humax Organic Fruit & Vegetable range. With 10 different varieties, they're convenient to use and produce a great crop anywhere on the patio, garden or even in a conservatory. Click here to find out more