And we’re off… February 2019 was the warmest on record, and as gardeners we’re all so excited to see our gardens bursting back into life. Its happening, the daffodils, crocuses and snowdrops are out, and shrubs are budding up and showing new growth.
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My garden isn’t pristine I haven’t picked up every leaf in the garden by Christmas, although I do do a huge amount of leaf clearing in the autumn, but my favourite part is to go out into the garden in January to March and gradually keep clearing the leaves. Gardening this way has multiple benefits, it gives lots of mini beasts places to hide over the winter, worms a chance to make some mulch for me, and the birds feed off the mini beasts so I get more wildlife in the garden. Plus as I go about the garden clearing leaves I get a chance to really see what is going on in my flowerbeds, which plants are showing life and giving me hope that even when its freezing cold and wet, that spring is just around the corner.
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I’ve been looking at the plants in my garden and have to admit that I probably need to narrow down the number of different types of plants I have. Something I’m going to try and focus on over the next year. Time to get tough and take out what isn’t working (such as Veronica Spicata Red Fox, Scabiosa Butterfly Blue) and increase the number of plants of ones that do.
Now is a great time of year for buying 9cm pots at a really cost effective price £1.99 each or 6 for £8.99 at Longacres. I haven’t managed to find anywhere cheaper and they have a great selection both in store and online.
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On a recent shopping trip I came home with this little lot…
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Some of them you can plant straight out, such as the Erysimum Bowles Mauve, Digitalis Camelot Rose
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whilst others such as Echinops,
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it pays to pot them on into a 1 litre and then maybe even a 2 litre pot to give their roots a chance to establish and have strong healthy growth so they can fend of the slugs and the snails a bit easier, along with the help of some strulch around the base of the plant. The Echinops Ritro seem to be a bit temperamental so I’m hoping to give them a chance to have really strong root growth before planting them out this time. I think previously I planted them out too early and as a result only have 2 out of the 9 originally planted left, patience…. Gardening is all about patience and learning from mistakes.
I’ve recently planted the first of my seeds for the year. Stocks, Echinacea White Swan, and Agastache Lavender Blue. A first time for me with all of these seeds so we’ll see how they get on. So far the Agastache seem to be slow and steady, the Stocks are romping away and the Echinacea has one lonely seedling poking its head out. I have in the past been known to be so impatient I planted my Cosmos seeds at the end of January, they were long and leggy in no time due to low light levels so I’m now waiting until mid March or maybe even later before sowing them to see how we get on this year. Again patience is a virtue…
Now is also a great time for thinking of bedding plants and if you have a warm windowsill or greenhouse you can get a great selection of bedding at from as little as 79p a pot.
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I don’t have a huge amount of space for these although I did succumb to buying these combination trays of calibrachoa cabaret rose and calibrachoa cabaret light pink. I’m loving the colour combinations so I’ll keep pinching them out and potting them on ready for when the frosts finish.
At this time of year you can’t go out into the garden without ending up doing a few little jobs, watering my cold frame turned into cleaning it out, potting up my agapanthus seedlings in there which were bursting out of their pots, planting out some alliums and starting to clear the ivy in my woody area which is getting smothered in the hope the bluebells have a chance to break through, talking of which I’d best get back out there before the rain starts again.
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