Gardening: A season of surprises as gardens begin to wake

In the Garden

We seem to be having two days of spring sunshine a week now where we are seduced into believing we can dust off the shorts and get the suncream out. In reality it’s choosing which coat to put on. 

What I have noticed is how many roses I seem to have accumulated. When I first started gardening, roses were an intimidating puzzle that really didn’tt need to be. Mostly this was around pruning. 

They are pretty resilient and almost impossible to kill by pruning alone. We prune for shape and to stop the plant becoming leggy, woody and not producing flowers. Like all plants they need to access nutrients so give them a slow release feed around now and layer them with well rotted manure. Roses in heirloom gardens always seem to have a rich dark mulch permanently around them. They love moisture and hate weeds so this is ideal. 

As long as they have around six hours of sunlight and a bit of space from other significant plants they will thrive with feeding and pruning. 

Whatever variety of rose you choose then they all need similar care. Whether it’s a climber, a shrub rose, a standard or a bush variety, do some reading around its likely spread and learn to enjoy it. Every year you’ll learn something new about its likes and dislikes so that you can keep it flowering as long as possible. Some roses will keep flowering all year round in our climate with the right environment and conditions. 

As a rule they don’t like to be moved but can tolerate it over winter if pruned and the rootball is kept moist. For this reason it's important to plan the planting location and get it right the first time. 

There are over 30,000 different cultivars of rose so break the choice down into colour, scent and type to suit the location. If you’re buying one for your Auntie Melinda then pump her for information beforehand. Roses are a gift to last a lifetime, hence the expense and bother of looking after them.

On the Plot

There is still time to sow greenhouse crops, but you’ll need to be quick before they run out of sunlight in autumn. It can be an awkward time at home where negotiations are ongoing for more windowsill space. I’ve found clear storage boxes prevent compost getting everywhere and can look neat until it’s time to go outside. 

Veg with a slow growing cycle like celeriac or winter squash can be sown now. I'm determined to get a decent crop of celeriac again but they do take some looking after. The seeds need light to germinate so they can be broadcast on top of a seedbed on a seed tray. They don’t mind being potted on into larger pots until the rootball gets established. 

The two biggest enemies are frosts and hungry molluscs so try to keep them indoors as young plants as long as you can before hardening off. Once they grow some resilience to the cold they can go outside in a compost rich bed that you really must keep moist or at least don’t let it dry out.  

Effective slug barriers are wool pellets, sharp sand and try watering in some nematodes just to keep the population down to manageable levels. 

Make sure the beds are clear and have had some kind of compost layered on top over winter. In no time at all you will be needing space to drop in plants grown from seed or be sowing direct so its the ideal to have a fine tilth ready. 

Just being outside with the sun on our backs will make a major difference to us all. So when we do get one of those sunny days, get outside for the day even if it’s just for some hoeing over weeds or having a potter without intent.