March in the Gardens

March, well it may be the beginning of spring, the plants begin to emerge from their winter sleep, the nights get longer, the weather hopefully improves, the lambs start appearing in the fields and the birds begin singing their wee hearts out but it's not my favourite month. I'd like it to be, I love seeing the leaves emerging spring flowers unfurling, I love the first tentative warmth of the sun and the skipping lambs and David and I got engaged in March. But my Dad died in March, so did my old dog Sam, it's mothers day, my mothers birthday and the anniversary of my first marriage which remind me of fraught family issues. But moving on, because we must in order to survive, achieve and create.

Frosty Tiarella grandiflora 'Rubra'

We've had all sorts of weather this March; frost, snow, brilliant sunshine and everything in between but in the main it's been dry so there's been lots of progress in the nursery. We re-opened the nursery at the beginning of March after our winter break and have been busy since which is great and lovely to welcome back previous customers and new ones too.

One of my own Hellebore seedlings

Ranunculus 'Brazen Hussy'

Bright Polyanthus for pots and containers

I've managed to do virtually nothing in the garden at home except for tidying some pots and top dress them and hopefully once the longer nights come in I'll get more done. In the nursery it's busy, busy, busy, it's  that manic time of year for gardeners.

We've made huge progress in the
new herb and scented gardens

The Quirky Bird Gardener planting in the herb garden

More herbs going into the herb garden

Elsewhere in the nursery I've started giving the stock beds their post winter tidy up and top dress. This involves lifting out  batch, sweeping and leaves and debris, weeding, cutting back the plants and topdressing them with fresh compost and feed. Rowed up and with new bed labels for this year, it's all looking very smart.

Starting to spring clean the stock beds

Cutting back, weeding and top dressing the plants,
ready for selling

we've really made progress in the
scented garden too

Digging over the border and
clearing where the path will be

Looking forward to seeing it finished

Meanwhile the herb garden beds are really filling up with plants

The hedge and catmint planted at
 the entrance to the scented garden

I grab an hour when I can to get seeds sown, with over 400 packets to sow it's a big task amongst everything else, but I do love doing propagation. It's nice to spend a quiet hour first thing in the morning in the poly tunnel getting organised before the chaos of the day begins. 

Trying to make room for seeds

It's in March colour in the garden really gets going with Hellebores, Crocus, Polyanthus and early daffodils. The bulbs that didn't sell as dry bulbs in autumn get potted up and sold in spring, so we've had lots of pots of colour for sale in the nursery. 

Crocus 'Romance' was a real show stopper

as were this lovely selection of Hellebores

Lots of colour in the nursery

Our old barrow loaded up with Polyanthus

Sowing beans, not magic one's though, just dwarf french

Despite the very windy wet weather or rather because of it, I got my potting area cleared of all the plants that have been patiently waiting to be potted or tidied to go into the sales area. I now gave a clear bench! Until the next time. I even got quite a few more packets seeds sown including these dwarf French beans. Love the colour of them.

Starting to plant up the scented garden

Potting up rooted pieces of Monrda

We've had a lot of this for March

David's plumber's nightmare is
switched on for the season

Sun and Daffodils

Valeriana phu 'Aurea'

I love blue skies and daffodils

We have a great expanding collection of
alpines, all propagated from
my collection at home

Sempervivium tectorium 'Rubin'

The mints all potted up for the herb garden

So as you can see March has been busy, busy busy and April is going to be just the same, hope you are all enjoying your own gardens and all the spring colour.

Like us on Facebook:

The quirky Bird Gardener                    Quercus Garden Plants

Our web site: www.quercusgardenplants.co.uk


Follow us on Instagram @quirkybirdgardener

Bloglovin

You can now sign up for our monthly newsletter on the facebook page or by emailing us to be added to our mailing list

All contents  and photographs ©  Rona, unauthorised reproduction & use of these images is strictly forbidden