Greenhouse and House Plants
- Sow seeds now of tomatoes for greenhouse growing, also peppers and chillis, because delayed sowing will delay cropping and ripening of the last of the tomato crop next October.
- Most greenhouse plants in pots will benefit from an increase in watering now as growth begins.
- Greenhouse camellias in pots will be showing flowers of quality more perfect than those outdoors.
- Feeding of greenhouse plants can now begin.
- Tap the flowers of a peach tree to release pollen or use a fine brush.
Fruit, Vegetables and Herbs
- If it has been too wet to dig ground over, wait until it dries out.
- It is a good time to put in permanent vegetables such as rhubarb, globe artichokes and asparagus.
- Asparagus crowns are sometimes offered for sale about now and they should be planted as fresh as possible in well-drained soil in a sunny position.
- Plant garlic and shallot sets, if the ground is dry enough to cultivate.
- Sow seeds of early varieties of cabbage, cauliflower, carrots, lettuce and onions in a tunnel or glasshouse to plant out for early crops.
- New fruit trees should be planted as soon as possible.
- Pruning of apple and pear trees and blackcurrant bushes should be completed within a couple of weeks.
Lawn
- Begin regular lawn mowing, if not already done, as there is normally quite a bit of grass growth during the winter in most parts and there can be a large amount of grass to remove.
- A heavy growth of grass may require two cuts – the first at a high setting to take off the top growth and a second mowing lower down.
- Apply lawn mosskiller if there is heavy moss growth.
- It is still a bit early for lawn feeding as the fertilizer can be washed away.
- If new areas of lawn are to be sown in spring, the ground should be cultivated if possible. If there are weeds present, these should be controlled or removed.
Flowers
- Spring bulbs are invaluable at this time and, as they go out of flower, they can be moved to new positions, the clumpbs being divided.
- Watch for slug damage to emerging shoots, even below ground level.
- Remove weeds from beds and borders between flowers and shrubs.
- Even though perennial flowers are showing good growth in many cases, they can still ‘be divided when in’ the early stages of new growth.
- Grasses can be divided and replanted now.
- It is getting a little late for sowing seeds of the slow developing summer bedding plants?… geraniums, lobelia, busy lizzie and bedding begonias. These should be sown by now and certainly not delayed much longer; otherwise flowering is delayed to late summer.
- There is still time to start off dahlias, begonias and cannas in pots of compost indoors.
Trees, Shrubs and Roses
- Deciduous trees begin to swell buds about now and the sooner they are planted the better as they run a increasing risk of failure.
- In an early year, the closing date on planting bare-root trees will need to be brought forward accordingly to avoid a lot of watering.
- More time is available still with evergreens.
- Bush roses and repeat-flowering climbers should be pruned in the next two weeks, if not already done.
- Rose bushes can still be planted, from pots ideally, as the new shoots are already started.
