The garden in March

The garden in March

March is the time to get out there and get things tidy and refreshed.

Herbaceous perennials should be lifted and divided now, if necessary. Lift crowns and prise apart with forks, taking care not to damage the newly forming buds and shoots. Give them to your friends as Easter presents.

Hybrid tea and floribunda roses can be pruned down to their final height now, cutting to an outward bud.

Over on the allotment, Dolly Larkman is starting to sow carrots, Brussels sprouts, parsnips and broad beans. Sadly she is also starting her annual indoor sowing of the Devil’s own vegetable, celery: the only activity likely to be an obstacle to an otherwise flawless friendship with us here at Minx HQ.

If you forgot to embark on your anti-slug campaign on Valentine’s Day, then watch out for slug damage to the young shoots of early perennials.

Doris does not disclose her methods for eliminating the little botherers, but we suspect it is not as wholesome and genteel as she would want us to believe.

Finally it’s never too early to plan your annual planting for your pots and window boxes. Any container with drainage makes a lovely feature and the joy is knowing you can move them around to refresh your garden at any time in the high summer.