Spring gardening in the UK truly begins in March, when longer days and warming soil make it the perfect time to sow seeds, plant spring flowers and prepare gardens for the growing season ahead. Whether you are looking for spring gardening tips, advice on what to plant in March, or inspiration for a brand-new garden, small jobs done now create colour and structure that last all year. From cheerful bulbs and starter plants to tree planting and garden planning, early spring offers the best opportunity to shape a healthy, thriving garden.
Hurrah for Spring Sunshine!
With a sprinkling of snow before Christmas and weeks of rain after, we are surely all ready for some spring cheer. March belongs to daffodils, and nothing lifts the mood quite like those dancing yellow flowers on verges, in gardens and in pots. Mix in a few brightly coloured primulas and you have an instant pick-me-up.
Gardens are waking up fast. Hellebores have been looking wonderful, bulbs are popping up everywhere, and my almond tree is bursting into pink blossom. It won’t be long before the forsythia at the front of the house is glowing with sunshine-yellow flowers too.
If you didn’t plant spring bulbs in autumn, it isn’t too late to enjoy colour. Daffodils, tulips and alliums are still available in our stores and ready to brighten pots and borders.
March is the perfect time for sowing annual flowers and vegetables such as carrots, runner beans and courgettes. Take care with seedlings and young bedding plants. They need to acclimatise gradually to outdoor conditions so that wind or cold doesn’t damage them before they establish. For more information read my guide to Hardening Off Plants in Spring.
Easter may be early this year, but the Tates of Sussex plant benches will be fully stocked with everything from trees and roses to herbs and the first of the summer bedding. Each visit to the plant area brings more colour, with camellias, primulas, erysimum and many more in full flower.
New Beginnings for Mayberry Garden Centre
Progress at Mayberry Garden Centre is as exciting as the season itself. The site will more than double in size, and the additional benches will soon offer space for an even wider range of beautiful plants. New polytunnel roofing means more covered areas for browsing and café visits, even on rainy days.
The new benches use timed irrigation fed by harvested rainwater. You can wander through display beds on the way to the café and enjoy a meal surrounded by olive trees, topiary and specimen plants. The expanded space makes shopping for trees, shrubs, bedding packs, herbs, alpines and herbaceous plants easier and more inspiring than ever. Keep an eye on our social media channels for updates on the building works.
Diggidy Dog!
Six months ago, my mum and her dog Asher moved in with me, which meant dog-proofing the garden. The plan worked – he never escaped – but he did defend the territory loudly against cats and squirrels (apologies to the neighbours).
A few beds suffered from enthusiastic digging. I refilled the holes and covered them with wire mesh to stop repeat offences. Now that spring growth is returning and Asher has moved with my mum to her new home, the mesh can come off and the garden can recover.
Asher loved visiting my allotment, happily exploring while I worked and nudging my pocket for treats. Interestingly, he never dug there. I suspect the raised beds created a visual boundary that he respected. If your dog digs in your flowerbeds, try adding a clear edge or barrier where you want to protect planting areas. You can click the button below to browse for hedging ideas.
New House – New Garden
Starter Plants
My mum moved into her new-build home in February, armed with cuttings from my garden and a fondness for the starter plant bench. Starter plants are one of the best ways to fill a garden on a budget.
These smaller plants offer excellent value if you’re patient. Though often sold in small pots, planting in early spring or September allows quick establishment in moist soil. If the ground is too wet, pot them into a larger container and keep them sheltered until conditions improve.
With a wide range both shrub and perennial starter plants available now, why not pop in and take a look. Within a couple of years, these modest plants will fill their space beautifully. Larger plants create instant impact but are harder on the pocket and demand more watering and care while they put down roots.
Trees for a New Garden
If you are revamping your garden or starting a garden from scratch like my mum, a good place to start is my guide ‘Planning and Creating a Garden for a Newbuild Property’ which walks through the process step by step. Building a garden is essentially the opposite to building a house – which you do from the ground up. With a garden, you start from the canopy and build downwards.
I have chosen an Amelanchier lamarckii for my mum as a moving in gift. It has beautiful white blossom in spring, autumn colour and berries which birds love. It is great for wildlife. Reaching about 4 x 3m it is just right for a small garden
Other great options which provide seasonal interest and support wildlife include:
Sorbus ‘Joseph Rocks’ A rowan with wonderful autumn colour and lots of berries for the birds,
Crab apples such as Malus ‘Red Sentinel’ with gorgeous blossom, autumn colour and fruit that can be used both for making jelly and for wildlife.
How to Plant a Tree – Step by Step
Container-grown trees can be planted in the ground at any time, but for optimal root growth autumn to spring is best. However, if your soil is frozen or waterlogged – wait a while.
Start by submerging the root ball in a bucket of water until the air bubbles stop.
Dig a hole two or three times wider than the root ball but no deeper. Loosen the base and sides of the hole with a garden fork. A square hole encourages roots to grow outward rather than circling.
Remove the plant pot and tease out the roots around the outside so that they stick out from the root ball a bit.
Sprinkle root grow over the base of the hole and the root ball. This will help your tree get off to a flying start and help the roots make good connections with the beneficial fungi in the soil.
Position your tree. Stand back to look from a distance and turn the tree so that it is showing it’s best side forward. Make sure the trunk will not end up buried any deeper than it was in the pot. Planting too deeply can cause the base of the trunk to rot.
Backfill with the excavated soil, firming down gently with your heel as you go to ensure there are no air pockets but keeping the trunk upright.
Insert a sturdy stake at 45% angle using a mallet to make sure it is as deep as possible. It should be positioned so that it is not hammered through the root ball and with the top pointing into the prevailing wind. Secure the trunk to the stake with a flexible spacer tree tie. Water thoroughly and mulch the surface, leaving a clear gap around the trunk to prevent rot.
As a rule of thumb the stake should be attached 1/3 of the way up the trunk and be at least 40cm deep in the ground. Your stake needs to be in place for two to three years until the tree is firmly rooted. Check the tie twice a year and loosen as the trunk grows. Dwarf fruit trees need permanent staking.
If you are planting a taller or larger specimen or you are in a particularly windy position you will need a pair of upright stakes with a cross bar.
With spring upon us your garden will reward even the smallest effort right now. Sow a few seeds, plant a tree, tuck in some starter plants or simply pause with a cup of tea and enjoy the colour returning day by day. Every job done in March is an investment in the summer ahead, and before long the spaces you tend now will be full of growth and life. Here’s to longer days, warmer soil and a garden that brings you joy all summer.
By our resident horticultural expert
