Amateur Gardening 17-Mar-2018

1 Mulching plants with manure or compost as they return to growth insulates and feeds roots, and helps keeps weeds at bay. 2 Frosts are still a threat, so protect tender shoots with a cloche. Remember to anchor it down if high winds are forecast. 3 Remove spent spring bedding to make room for summer colour. Compost healthy plants, but bin any with fungal problems such as pansy black spot. 4 If your borders now look rather bleak and barren, add some colour to give them a temporary lift before summer.…

THE saying ‘if you fail to prepare you are preparing to fail’ is as applicable to gardening as in any other endeavour. If you want a garden to be proud of this year, now is a good time to get out and see to your soil before the growing season really gets into its stride. Soil is a living thing, and should be rich in nutrients and beneficial microorganisms. But like anything else, it can get worn out and need nurturing back to its best. I like to start by removing any weary-looking spring bedding and forking over the borders where they may have become compacted during the winter. Then dig in lots of well-rotted compost or farmyard manure – a 2in (5cm) layer should be enough to really improve the soil. If you…

1 Weeds don’t hang about, even in winter, so get them out now before they flower and set seed. Regularly hoe beds to break weed roots so they don’t get a foothold. 2 Tired soil needs refreshing and improving, so fork in lots of well-rotted compost or manure. Early spring frosts and storms will help break down any large clumps of earth. 3 Layer last year’s container compost over borders. It will have negligible nutrients now, but will be drawn into the ground by worms and help improve the structure. 4 When digging soil or removing plants, keep an eye out for pests such as these snail eggs. Either squash them or leave them exposed for hungry birds to find. Spring into action: Buy next week’s AG (in the shops 20 March) for your…

Early spring is the perfect time to improve heavy or thin soil ready for the growing season. Heavy clay soils that are hard to work and soon become waterlogged can be lightened by digging in plenty of well-rotted organic matter (compost or manure) with added grit. This makes it more free-draining and less likely to remain saturated after heavy rain. Thin, poor soils show better results if organic material is added as it helps them hold on to water and increases their nutrient levels.…

WE don’t have room for growing crops in borders so we stick to raised beds and patio containers. To get the best results we use a system of crop rotation, to prevent any build-up of pests and diseases, and replenish the soil and compost each year. This week I cleared the patio beds of any remaining plants, removed the top layer of compost and replaced it with fresh. The old stuff was added to the garden borders where worms will get to work and incorporate it into the soil. The larger raised beds were sown with green manures last autumn, which have protected the soil and stopped it becoming compacted by winter rain. The last lot has now been dug in and will rot down in a couple of weeks, nourishing…

HERBACEOUS perennials are the stalwarts of the garden, providing a framework to plan your annuals around. They sometimes run into trouble and out of steam after a few years, sprawling out of their allotted space and creating fewer flowers. Instead of buying new, save money by dividing them. This creates several smaller plants, and once these divisions get going they should grow well with improved blooming. Summer-flowering perennials are best divided in spring or autumn (though delay autumn work until the following spring if conditions are too wet). Spring-flowering varieties should be lifted and divided in summer after flowering. However, I decided to split a congested spring-flowering iris this week after lifting it to remove a mass of weeds growing among the roots. It had been in the border for years and its crown had…