What to do in your garden in March.

March, a precursor to autumn. Daily temperatures are decreasing with plant and flower growth slowing down considerably. Soon our gardens and neighbourhoods will become ablaze with the gorgeous golden glows of autumn. It is that time of the year when we start preparing our gardens for the hibernation of nature, sowing seeds for winter and spring harvests, planting vegetable and herb plants for an autumn harvest and applying mulch blankets to keep root systems dry and warm.

Flowers

• Remove summer annuals that are faded, especially Petunias that are long and leggy and Impatiens that are looking limp and tired. Replace with autumn flowering annuals like Pansies, Violas and Primulas.
• Start preparing and planning beds for spring flowering bulbs like Daffodils, Snowdrops, Ranunculus and Anemones.
• Indoor bulbs such as Hyacinths can also be planted now so that they flower at Easter time.
• Sow flower seeds like Primulas, Sweet Peas, Stocks, Namaqualand Daisies, Delphiniums, Gazania and Iceland Poppies.

Lawns

• An ideal time to create a new lawn using seed or grass.
• Continue fertilising your lawn with Wonder Vitaliser Lawn and Leaf or Talborne’s Vita Green 5:1:5 (16).

Vegetables, Herbs & Fruit

• Continue to replenish your herb supply with fresh available herb plants like Basil, Dill, Coriander and Rocket.
• Plant vegetables like Tomatoes, Chillies, Brinjals, Spinach, Peppers and Lettuce varieties.
• Plant fruit bearing berry bushes and vines like Strawberries, Raspberries, Blueberries and Blackberries.
• Sow vegetable seeds like Broad Beans, Broccoli, Beetroot, Swiss Chard, Carrot, Cabbage and Leeks.
• Citrus trees can be fed with 2kg of Rose Food and 75 g of Magnesium Sulphate (Epsom Salts).

General Tasks

• Start clearing up any fallen leaves and other dead plant material to prevent over-wintering.
• Transplant plants which are in the wrong positions in autumn so they have time to settle in during the winter months.
• Prune back and clean out hedges.
• Plant new shrubs and trees to ensure a good start in spring, as roots will have time to establish through the winter months.
• Start your own compost heap.
• Or alternatively, start your own wormery – to create the best garden compost you will ever lay your hands on.
• Start feeding the birds – hang up some feeders with a variety of seeds and suet balls to attract different birds to your garden.