March should see the start of spring, so there will be plenty to keep you occupied in the flower garden next month. Here are a few pointers for a few common garden flowers:
Winter-flowering jasmine
A little light pruning after the blooms have died will encourage new blooms to flourish. Trim back, leaving around 5cm of last year’s growth as well as the older wood.
Winter-flowering heather
As the blooms droop, trim back to stop the heather plants developing over-long stems.
Winter pansies
These can be deadheaded to prevent seed setting. New blooms should then appear during spring.
Daffodils
Once the bell-like yellow flowers have finished flowering, they can also be deadheaded. The leaves can be left, as they will die down without intervention.
Hydrangea
You can deadhead as well as cutting these back, leaving around a third of last year’s growth in place before the new growth beings to appear.
Fuchsia
Any plants that flowered during winter can be pruned back, leaving just one or a couple of buds per shoot.
Clematis
Those that bloomed over winter can be pruned once the flowers wilt, while summer-flowering varieties should be pruned before they commence their main period of growth.
Roses
Roses require a bit of attention this month, in the form of pruning to encourage new growth, as well as feeding with a balanced fertiliser or specialist rose feed once they begin to bud.
Hellebores
Old foliage can be removed to minimise the risk of disease and ensure new flowers can easily be seen.
By taking care of a few pruning tasks in the spring, this will result in a more beautiful and fuller looking flower garden in the summer.
