Choice plants in March
This March has arrived with a promise of longer days and better weather, and the mood on the nursery has lifted.
Aunty Pat, who we sorely missed last year when she was having a hip replaced, has been cracking the whip, and all our young plant stock has been potted up ready in record time, ready for sale this Spring.
Her team is now busy weeding over wintered stock, giving all the plants a fresh topdressing of bark, so they look their best when they arrive at your door.
The boys are doing repairs to the tunnels damaged by the snow. One of the shade tunnels collapsed and will need to be rebuilt over the next few weeks.
The cold weather has been a salutary reminder that tender plants are just that. Tender. Almost all the bananas have been frosted as have the Fatsias, Cordylines and Zantedeschia.
This cold winter hasn’t set us back as far as Chelsea plants are concerned. As long as it’s cold when it’s meant to be cold, we are fine, it’s when we get a late frost in April , like last year, that we are in trouble. Some plants, like the Alchemilla erythropoda, are coming on nicely and now need to be moved outside. Others, like Luciano’s Salvia caradonna, are being pinched out to make them nice and bushy. Meanwhile, the Iris siberica ‘Tropic Night’ is being potted on into 15 litre pots so that the roots can get an extra boost in time for the show. And everything is getting a liquid feed.
So, it feels like nature is on the move. It’s time to get into the garden and get some plants in the ground!
For me March is incredibly exciting. Look around the garden now and you will see signs of life everywhere. New shoots are pushing up from beneath the earth and buds are turning fat on bare branches. There is still time to move a few over-crowded perennials if they need more space, but make sure they are settled into their new position quickly, and give them lots of water until they have had a chance to become established. Now is also a great time to spread a generous layer of composted organic matter around the base of the plants. This will act as a slow release fertiliser, which will help get the plants off to a flying start, as well as help preserve moisture and suppress weeds.
Top six choices
What it’s useful for:
Closely related to Daphne, this deciduous plant originates from wooded, mountainous areas in China. The heavily scented flowers are invaluable for adding much needed scent to the garden in late winter and early spring, and the beneficial insects will flock to them. Occasionally referred to as Edgeworthia papyrifera, its bark can be used to make paper, and is used in Japan to make their banknotes.
Why I like it:
Not everyone will be able to grow this late winter gem. It is hardy to -5C, but it does need a sheltered spot to thrive. Once established it needs little attention, but it will continue to impress friends and neighbours when most plants are dormant. Perfect for a woodland edge or base of a warm wall, it associates well with naturalised drifts of early spring bulbs such as snowdrops or crocus.
What it’s useful for:
One of the most attractive of the hellebores, the flower petals can vary from pale to mid pink, which deepen in colour around the edges, or sometimes they have attractive darker veining. They slowly spread to form dense clumps so are great for creating a carpet of early colour under established trees.
Why I like it:
Low maintenance, virtually evergreen with a long flowering period and tolerant of dry shade, these plants should play an essential part of the winter garden. Mix them with ferns, Anemone blanda or hyacinths to create a naturalised woodland carpet, or pot them up and make a seasonal feature of them on the patio.
What it’s useful for:
This British native is not only beautiful, but it is an excellent little plant for edging a mixed, or cottage style border, or creating a carpet of spring colour in a woodland walk. The soft yellow flowers emerge from amongst a rosette of dark green leaves from spring, and are usually scented. Pollinated at night by moths, it is also attractive to bees and butterflies.
Why I like it:
It has a long and colourful history in folklore, and strong links to fairies - eating the flowers is said to make it possible to see them. In times gone by, the Romans used it to treat malaria, the Victorians to make an expectorant, and legend has it, that the stem juice can remove spots and freckles. I just think it looks great, especially when planted in big, bold swathes.
What it’s useful for:
A classic winter flowering shrub, which can cope with most things, including really cold and exposed spots. For something so robust, the pretty clusters of pink, tubular flowers, which appear on the bare branches throughout winter and early spring, look surprisingly delicate. Their scent however is pretty powerful, and to make the most of it, you should plant it near an entranceway or path.
Why I like it:
I’m not the only one who thinks this deciduous shrub is pretty special, as the Royal Horticultural Society has bestowed upon it their coveted Award of Garden Merit. Like many of the winter flowering plants, the flowers are highly scented to attract whatever pollinating insects there may still be around, and it will keep bursting into flower over several months, during milder spells throughout winter and early spring. Cut the flowers and bring them indoors to fill the house with their sweet perfume.
What it’s useful for:
One of the best perennial wallflowers, which will keep on producing flowers from late winter to mid summer, and then, incredibly, if you remove the spent flower stems, they may produce a second flush in autumn. They do well in pots so can be used as a longer-lasting alternative to summer bedding, and can be cut and used in fresh or dried flower arrangements.
Why I like it:
I can never get over what good value these plants are. They may be short lived, but their ability to flower for months on end make them one of my all-time favourites. Plant them next to silver or blue-grey leaved plants in a sunny, well-drained spot and I guarantee you will be won over.
What it’s useful for:
Perfect for training against a wall where the bare, splayed branches can reveal the apple blossom-like, spring flowers to perfection. Alternatively it makes an unruly, but effective hedge or screen, where its thorny stems will deter even the most determined intruder. A tough shrub, which will grow just about anywhere, but it will flower best in full sun.
Why I like it:
The simple, cup-shaped flowers tend to appear later than other cultivars, and they are followed in late summer and autumn by lumpy, greenish-yellow, aromatic fruits. These cant be eaten raw, but they are edible when cooked, and are often used for making jams. An easy to grow gem which works well in a Japanese style garden.
