Hello, spring! The snowdrops and daffodils are out in force signalling the beginning of new life in our gardens along with longer & brighter days. March is the perfect time to start prepping the garden and greenhouse. Our March gardening jobs will get you on the right track and ready for the months ahead with tips and tricks for growing and sowing flowers, fruit and veg!

Gardening Basics in March

March is the perfect time to start sowing seeds for the summer months, organising, cleaning and prepping the garden. Get the patio washed and tubs and containers cleaned out ready for spring. Here are our top 3 gardening jobs to get your garden ready for planting:

1. Fertilise Beds

Once the ground has started thawing out, dig out around 5cm off the top layer and replace it with good compost or manure to enrich the soil in preparation for growth in the coming months. Think about adding in an all-purpose fertiliser too such as fish, blood & bone.

2. Prune

Tidy up perennials by cutting back old growth. Is important to do this now as leaving it till later on can affect the plant's growth going forward. Prune bush and shrub roses by pruning off anything that looks unhealthy such as spindly branches. Buddleia should also be pruned now, cutting it right back to around 15cm. It may look bare but this fast-growing plant will soon be flourishing! Lastly, remove any weak growth from hydrangeas and winter flowering Jasmine.

3. Start a Compost Bin

If you already have a compost bin - check to see if you have any compost to use to replenish beds and pots. Move any bags of compost into a warm place such as a greenhouse to warm up for a few days before planting in it. If you do not, now is a great time to start one. Compost bins come in all shapes and sizes. Either buy a ready-made one or create your own by reusing old pallets.

Growing & Sowing in March

March can be a tricky time and gardening calendars aren't always accurate due to the inconsistent weather. Here in the UK we can go from warm sunny days to frosty and grey in the space of a few hours. This will affect the initial planting of flowers, bulbs and crops - steer clear of planting tender plants and keep checking how hard the soil is as it begins to thaw. Cover any prepared soil with black plastic bags to protect it.

Vegetables in March

March is a perfect time to start sowing seeds if you are starting early, use a greenhouse, windowsill or containers to protect the seeds. Plants and crops will need to be hardened off before planting outside by gradually adjusting them to the temperature. Here are the main March gardening jobs in the vegetable garden this month:

Potatoes - Carry on chitting potatoes or plant out early varieties. They are ideally suited to containers so start them off in the greenhouse to protect them from any late frost damage.

Asparagus - Weed by hand to protect roots and cover asparagus beds with mulch.

Start Sowing seeds for brassicas, leeks, lettuce, peas and parsnips outdoors in mild conditions, and beetroot, carrots, celery, peppers and tomatoes undercover.

Fruit in March

March is the time to trim, protect and feed fruit plants in the garden, here are the main march gardening jobs in the fruit garden:

Raspberry Canes - cut any autumn fruiting raspberry canes to the ground to stimulate new growth which will fruit again in the autumn. Cut the tops, just above the bud of summer any fruiting canes.

Rhubarb - plant out early rhubarb. Rhubard planted in a pot can be planted outside anytime providing the soil is not waterlogged or frozen.

Strawberries - cover strawberries with a cloche to encourage earlier fruiting.

Fruit Trees - mulch all fruit trees but be careful to not mound around the tree trunks.

Flowers in March

  • Start sowing hardy annuals outdoors such as poppies and nasturtiums
  • Deadhead spring-flowering flowers and let the foliage die back naturally.
  • Prune clematis, winter flowering jasmine, fuchsias and roses back.
  • Plant summer flowering bulbs on beds and borders once the soil is thawed.
  • Plant new roses, shrubs and climbers
  • Sow native wildflower seeds in trays
  • Sow sweet peas in deep pots and keep warm in a greenhouse or sunny windowsill

Gardening in March Videos

Here are some helpful videos to watch when preparing your garden in March: