Five important jobs gardeners urged to get done this week for a lush spring plot
This week I’ve been busy getting my garden into shape. And there are several jobs I recommend you take care of now:
Late February and early March is also good time to move evergreen trees – the soil is beginning to warm up and the plant will be in situ before spring growth. I’ve been busy getting my garden into shape and the first job was planting two topiary bay trees that needed a home.
To reduce the chance of the trees going into shock, make sure they are well watered before you plant them and keep them well watered afterwards. It’s a good idea to enrich the planting hole with some compost beforehand and apply a good mulch around the base of the tree when it’s in, which will help conserve moisture and deliver nutrients to the roots.
There’s a small courtyard patio in front of the kitchen that has been in need of some attention. It’s a paved area with mainly evergreen planting such as bamboos, fatsia, ferns and euphorbia. Soon the forsythia will produce a dazzling display of gold-yellow flowers and in summer the ‘Annabelle’ hydrangea will come into flower. However, at this time of year, it was distinctly lacking in colour.
The garden really came to life when I introduced the newly planted pots. I used terracotta but all variety of pots are suitable for this, once they have drainage holes. I chose a selection of spring bulbs that have, or are just about to, come into flower.
But this is also a project you can do in autumn when the bulbs are dormant and that will be the cheaper way to do it. However if you didn’t get around to it, it’s lovely to pick up some flowers right now and when they have finished flowering, they can remain in the pots for next year or be planted in the ground.
I used a selection of fragrant hyacinths in purple, pink and white colours and paired these with an elegant Muscari called ‘White Spear’. Muscari, or grape hyacinth, as they are more commonly known, usually come in blue but I like this unusual variety.
Some pots are mixed but others are filled to the brim with single species such as the gorgeous Primula ‘Chameleon’ whose petals are a mix of salmon, pink and yellow above crinkly leaves.
I also planted up pots of viola, campanula and daffodils and employed a neat trailing ivy called ‘Wilco’ with pointy leaves to drape down some of the pots. With a bit of care – watering and deadheading – many of these flowers will last through March and April and then it’ll be time for a revamp with summer colour.
An old Lutyens bench that is central to the courtyard was also looking worse for wear and calling out for attention. The blue paint was wearing off and there was even some moss growing on it that had settled in over winter. It was time to give it a new lease of life.
I washed off all the algae and dirt with warm soapy water and used a knife to remove stubborn moss. Once it was dry, I gently sanded it all over. Then I applied a quick-drying exterior satin paint in a mid-green colour.
On a dry day this is a job you can complete in a few hours and it will make your furniture look brand new. A quick power hose also lifted the dirt and green off the paving stones.
You can watch all of last weekend’s work in a video on my Instagram account @diarmuidgavin
This is a beautiful early-spring-flowering rhodo with fragrant white flowers gently blushed with pink. It’s a compact evergreen variety growing to around 1.5m in height. Grow in acidic soil, outdoors in mild coastal areas or indoors in ericaceous compost where it will make a statement plant in a cool conservatory.
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