GardenAdvice.co.uk Gardening calendar 1st week March 2025 ( Audio Available )

Listen to the Google Deep Dive overview of the GardenAdvice weekly calendar by downloading the .wav audio file click here or as podcast on the GardenAdvice podcast section

As the light levels begin to increase, spring is truly underway! Many early-flowering plants are starting to bloom, and now is the perfect time to give your garden a boost. Here’s your to-do list for the first week of March.

1. Feed Early-Flowering Plants

• Camellias, rhododendrons, and magnolias are making a major effort to produce beautiful blooms.
• Give them a feed of liquid tomato feed (high in magnesium and potash) to support flower maintenance and plant strength.

2. General Garden Feeding

• If you haven’t done so already, now is a great time to feed your entire garden.
• Apply Growmore fertilizer (a balanced feed) at a rate of one handful per square meter across your flower beds, hedges, and pots (using a reduced amount for pots).
• Conifer hedges, in particular, benefit from feeding to maintain their health.

3. Lawn Care: Managing Worm Casts

• As the weather dries out, start brushing your lawn to disperse worm casts.
• If the casts crumble easily in your fingers, it’s the right time to brush them away.
• If worm casts are a persistent issue, check out the GardenAdvice website for methods to adjust the pH of the topsoil to encourage worms to burrow deeper while keeping their benefits in your soil.

4. Sowing Sweet Peas for Summer Colour

• Sweet peas have a tough outer shell, so scuff them lightly or soak them in water for 24 hours before sowing.
• Once soaked, sow them individually into pots for mid-summer blooms and wonderful fragrance.

5. Making Natural Plant Supports

• Start collecting hazel stems to make your own eco-friendly and cost-effective plant supports.
• These are ideal for plants like peonies, and homemade supports save money compared to expensive metal garden centre alternatives.

6. Mulching Your Beds

• Apply mulch before plants start growing to suppress weeds and retain moisture.
• Use clean mulching materials such as:
  • Spent mushroom compost
  • Well-rotted horse manure ( ideal for acid loving plants ) 
  • Garden compost
• For herbaceous borders, consider laying cardboard (e.g., from Amazon deliveries) under the mulch.
  • It suppresses weed growth for up to a year before rotting down naturally.
  • While it won’t stop deep-rooted weeds like dandelions or couch grass, it effectively controls seed-grown weeds like chickweed and bittercress.

If you are a GardenAdvice MyGardenTeam member it’s a great time to look at the Roots, shoots and share service which will provide you with rooted cutting of shrubs such as hydrangeas and skimmia you can grow on in pots before planting out in your garden. 

That’s your GardenAdvice.co.uk Gardening Calendar for the first week of March!Happy gardening! 🌱