What to do during March in your garden and greenhouse.
Your monthly gardening checklists
Flowers
- Pick off any developing seedheads on daffodils and other spring bulbs, but leave the foliage to die back naturally
- Finish pruning roses early in the month
- Cut dogwoods, willows, cotinus and paulownia right down to the base to promote vigorous new growth
- Tidy up alpines as they start to flower, removing dead foliage, then mulch with grit to keep the foliage off damp soil
- Plant faded forced bulbs out in the garden for blooms next year
- Plant lilies and other summer-flowering bulbs in pots and borders. Take a look at our complete guide to planting bulbs.
- Feed ericaceous shrubs, such as rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias and pieris, with an ericaceous fertiliser
- Tidy up borders, removing established and newly-germinating weeds. Watch how Monty weeds by hand.
- Mulch borders generously with garden compost
- Plant new roses and other shrubs and climbers
- Sow wildflower seeds in trays or modules, to produce plants for your own mini-meadow
- Check tender new shoots for aphids, and remove before infestations get out of hand
- Continue deadheading spring flowers and any remaining winter bedding so they don't set seed
- Take a look at this video for tips on the best plant feeds and fertilisers to use in spring.
Fruit and veg
- Avoid carrot root fly by sowing an early crop of carrots under cloches or fleece
- Sow tomatoes, chillies, sweet peppers and aubergines in pots indoors
- Plant Jerusalem artichoke tubers, at a depth of 10-15cm, spaced about 30cm apartÂ
- Buy young herbs to plant in containers near your back door, for handy pickings
- Plant onion and shallot sets, spacing them 10-15cm apart
- Make the first outdoor sowings of hardy veg, such as spinach, covering with cloches or fleece - find out how else to protect young veg plants
- Plant early potatoes in trenches on the veg plot, or in large tubs if space is limited. Find out more about the different types of potato
- Sow parsnips as soon as the soil starts to warm up, as they're slow to germinate and need a long growing season
- Plant a fig tree in a large container to restrict its roots, which encourages fruiting and limits its overall sizeÂ
- Feed cabbages and other brassicas with nitrogen-rich fertiliser, such as pelleted chicken manure
- Plant bare-root asparagus crowns in well-drained soil or raised beds, in an open, sunny spotÂ
- Start hoeing veg beds as soon as the weather starts to warm up, as weeds will germinate quicklyÂ
- Plant strawberries in a hanging basket to keep the fruits away from slugs
- Give blackcurrant bushes a high-nitrogen feed
House plants
- Water your house plants more regularly as the temperatures warm, check the soil before watering. Take a look at our guide to watering house plants
- Maximise the amount of light your house plants receive by moving to brighter spots, or choose house plants that will grow in shadier spots
- Some house plants, like snake plants, are particularly prone to collecting dust on their leaves. So be sure to give these a wipe regularly
- Try and keep house plants away from temperature fluctuations caused by draughts or central heating
- Check your house plants for pests like aphids, scale insect, thrips and mealybugs Â
For more house plant advice and inspiration visit our Growing and caring for house plants page
Greenhouse
- Get crops off to a good start indoors to transplant into the garden later, such as celeriac, celery, lettuces and parsley
- Take down bubble insulation in the greenhouse once temperatures start to rise, to let in more light
- Sow a selection of vibrant annual climbers, such as Spanish flag (Ipomoea lobata) and black-eyed Susan (Thunbergia alata 'Arizona Glow')
- Buy good value young bedding plants for growing on to a larger size under glass, or sow your own in a heated propagator
- Sow dwarf French beans in a large pot for an early indoor crop in June
- Plant prepared freesia bulbs in pots of rich, loam-based compost, for fragrant flowers indoors this summer
- Pot up overwintering cannas into fresh compost, water in, then place in a warm spot to spur them into growth
- Sow sweet peas in deep pots and keep them frost-free in a greenhouse or on a sunny windowsill
- Take cuttings from dahlia tubers planted last month to raise new plants
- Protect greenhouse sowings of peas, mangetouts and sweet peas from hungry mice
- Be vigilant for greenhouse and houseplant pests, such as mealy bugs, and treat straight away
- Open greenhouse vents on sunny days to prevent humidity building up. Take a look at what else to do to prepare your greenhouse for spring.
- Take basal cuttings from perennials, such as delphiniums and lupins, to root in a pot indoors
Garden maintenance
- Find out how to give your lawn a spring boost
- Build or buy a new compost bin, ready to recycle the coming season's garden wasteÂ
- Dig out a new pond, or install a water feature, to attract more wildlife
- Put slug barrier products around the new shoots of hostas and other susceptible perennials. Find out how to deal with slugs and snails organically
- Replant pots of bulbs from indoors into borders, once the display is over, then water in well and apply liquid feed
- Check that tree ties aren't too tight and that stakes are still firmly anchored in the ground
- Prune out any wind-damaged branches on trees and shrubs
- Fork up emerging shoots of perennial weeds, such as ground elder, removing every bit of root
- Place bug boxes or bundles of hollow stems in sheltered corners, where insects can lay their eggs. Find out how to make a bug box
- Keep putting out food for garden birds, as the breeding season gets underway
- Chop down winter-grown green manure and dig into the soil, to get the veg plot ready for sowing
- Cut back winter-flowering jasmine to keep it within bounds and encourage flowers next year
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One of the iconic cottage garden perennials, this classic flowered poppy with its characteristic black centre is a real low-maintenance, easy plant. Best started from bare roots in autumn and early spring, this mix of shades will include reds, oranges, pinks, and whites. Be bold and plant them randomly, or if you prefer to see what colour they flower, grow them in a pot for the first few months and see what shades you get.
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