Sometimes, the colder weather isn't the most inviting when it comes to going out in the garden, but the difference between a poor season and a great season can all come down to how you prepare your garden in the spring. Keep reading below for our tips and advice on how to get your garden ready for the spring and summer season.

Starting With The Basics

Giving everything a tidy, clean and sharpen is a great place to start at the beginning of March. Rake any leaves and add them to your compost. If you don't have a compost pile/bin then making or buying one now is a good idea especially whilst you'll have lots of organic waste to add to it from tidying up.

If you have a greenhouse, now is the time to get rid of broken pots and plant saucers, clear out some space and give it a good clean before the new season.

Weigh up the weather conditions before you think about mowing your lawn, we recommend leaving it until the end of March. If it was last cut in autumn it shouldn't have grown much from then. Cutting it to early can damage the grass making the next growth weaker.

Clean and sharpen your tools if you didn't already before the winter. Having everything prepped and ready to go makes things a lot easier when it comes to planting time.

March Plant Prep

You may be interested in growing your own fresh produce this year especially with the current supply issues regarding fruit and veg in supermarkets and the hotter summers. If so, you'll be wanting to prep now to make sure you have the best chance of a great season.

Lettuce - Lettuce is a great vegetable to start growing as you can pick the leaves off whenever you want to eat them so you get a fresh supply as and when you need it. If you want to plant them now, you should plant them in a propagator and keep them in your greenhouse or conservatory to keep the temperature more stable. 

Potatoes - You should be chitting potatoes at the beginning of March so that they can grow sprouts which takes around 4-6 weeks. After they have sprouted, you can then start planting the first potatoes at the beginning of April.

Cucumbers, tomatoes, courgettes, strawberries - If you're planting these in a heated greenhouse you can start planting now, if you're greenhouse is unheated, you want to wait until late-March/April. If you want to plant outside, we recommend waiting until mid April to do this. Make sure that you make space and prepare where you are going to plant, keep tomatoes in the sun 

Fruit trees - Mid-march is the best time to buy and plant your fruit tree, a multi-purpose compost and tomato feed is suitable for this. Whilst you may be dreaming of freshly picked apricots and nectarines, unfortunately the first year when buying a new fruit tree is most likely to not give you great results. This is because the roots establish themselves in the first year, but good things come to those who wait as your fruit tree will be ready to give you a great season next year with the right care and conditions. 

Freshen Up!

Choose a dry warmer day in March to spend it pruning, de-weeding, and tidying up. Loosen soil if you can and get rid of any diseased plants and overgrown plants and trees.

Make sure you choose a day to do this when there is no frost as your garden is fragile at these temperatures.

It's also a good time to clean any patio or decking area you have so that its clean and ready for the summer season.