Just as Christmas provokes a flurry of activity and preparation, the start of March heralds the same for those who enjoy cultivating plants from seeds. There’s a sense of organised chaos, as parcels of alluring commodities from favourite retailers make their way through the post. This is followed by creating a list of desirables and eager arrangement of necessary gardening tools and equipment.
On top of this, there’s the thrill and adrenaline rush that this season brings, certainly a highlight for many. We vividly picture the flourishing future of our gardens, with walls bursting with aromatic sweet peas, flower beds sporting an array of vivid blooms, and well-tended vegetable plots yielding bountiful capsicum. However, before diving into this delightfully frenetic yet life-affirming period, a few words of counsel from a fellow seed enthusiast wouldn’t go amiss, particularly given the ease of becoming overly zealous.
Primary among this advice is to avoid early sowing and plantation. For instance, hardy annuals such as beetroot, broad beans, cabbage, kale, carrots, parsnips, Swiss chard, and leeks may be planted now under a safe, frostless haven such as a greenhouse, polytunnel, frost-free enclosure, or a sunlit windowsill indoors within a cool, well-lit room. However, barring a few robust exceptions like broad beans, one ought to wait at least a fortnight before sowing seeds directly outside, provided that your garden or allotment is sufficiently sheltered and optimally warm.
This advice holds particularly pertinent this spring due to the numerous spells of heavy rainfall leading to cold and waterlogged terrains, thus inhibiting germination. Similarly, there are popular hardy flowering annuals such as pot marigolds (Calendula), love-in-a-mist (Nigella- preferably directly sown), sweet pea (Lathyrus odoratus), cornflowers (Centaurea cyanus) and Orlaya grandiflora among others that can bear the brunt of harsh conditions, thereby suiting an early sowing.
Half-hardy annual plants grow swiftly and have an affinity for warm climates. It is ill-advised to expose their seedlings to chilling conditions. It is better to plant them in their final spot in the garden or allotment when early summer arrives and the threat of frost is completely diminished. Therefore, it is recommended to commence their sowing in sheltered containers, such as seed trays or small pots, employing gentle warmth, from mid-March for those residing in warmer regions to mid-April for those in colder areas. An electric propagator for bottom heat can aid in speeding up the process of initial germination.
For those considering permanent indoor planting options like a polytunnel or a glasshouse, it is allowable to sow them at an earlier stage. Notably, some plants known for their love of heat and their sensitivity to frost, like tomatoes, aubergines, peppers and chilli peppers, need to be planted earlier in order to yield a good crop in Ireland despite the potential risk of cold temperatures. This risk generally subsides by the end of May.
Contemplating whether the crop you propose to grow will add value to your growing space is also inevitable.
Alternatively, if you’re looking to directly sow certain half-hardy annual seeds out in the open—in their permanent home in the ground—you must remember it’s always a risk. In such situations, waiting until mid-May and beyond to begin sowing is advised. Be vigilant about potential threats, including cold winds, late frosts, as well as slugs, snails, birds, and mice—all capable of causing considerable harm to the young seedlings.
A few practical safeguards include keeping a supply of horticultural fleece on hand, shielding vulnerable crops with netting, and using some form of organic snail and slug deterrent at an opportune time.
Some examples of highly regarded half-hardy blooming annuals are French marigolds (Tagetes), love-lies-bleeding (Amaranthus), cosmos, rudbeckia (Rudbeckia hirta), tobacco plant (Nicotiana), statice, sunflowers (Helianthus annuus), Morning glory (Ipomaea), and nasturtiums. Half-hardy vegetables may include lettuce, courgettes, sweetcorn, cauliflower, celery and French beans.
Various robust perennial flowers can be planted at this stage under sheltered conditions. Keep in mind, young saplings must be housed in a bright, cool, and frost-free environment as they strengthen their root systems and naturally grow more resistant in the upcoming months. Plants that can be planted in this manner include Achillea, Aquilegia, Scabiosa ochroleuca, Eryngium, Verbascum, Linaria, and Echinacea.
Aside from the timing of the seeding, it’s crucial to be sensible about how many young saplings and growths you can hold, not only temporarily under some kind of shelter in the forthcoming weeks but also as fully grown plants in your garden or plot. The usual mistake (I am also guilty of this) is to plant an entire packet of seeds, only to later realise, with regret, that there’s only enough space for a fraction of the resulting seedlings, which, sadly, end up as discard pile on the compost.
Also, it’s crucial to be pragmatic about the kind of conditions you can provide for growth. For instance, there’s little point in giving space, time, energy, and unwarranted expectation to a plant like sunflowers (Helianthus annuus) which seeks a very warm, protected, sunshine-filled spot, especially if your garden is windy and exposed, or cool and shady. Only disappointment will follow.
[The top 10 plants to add hue to your garden]
Be discerning whilst choosing the most feasible vegetable types for your allotment or kitchen garden. It might not be beneficial, for instance, to devote useful cultivation space to a crop that you don’t favour (in my case, turnips), or a vegetable that can be easily procured organically from a local grocer (like carrots), or one that is difficult and time-consuming to grow (I’m looking at you, celeriac). Consider carefully, are you fond enough of courgettes to dedicate the required square metre of land per plant for them to thrive optimally? Especially, if you maintain a small kitchen garden with crops growing in containers or window boxes, it would not be logical to grow space-demanding, and relatively unproductive crops like sweetcorn.
Some plant types or varieties are inherently labour and time demanding, which is yet another factor to consider in deciding your vital-growing shortlist. Take cordon-type tomatoes, for instance, they are notably high maintenance, demanding a suitable location (ideally a polytunnel or a glasshouse), meticulous watering, nutritional feeding, staking, side-shooting, and ventilation on hot sunny days. In contrast, trailing types are less demanding. Similarly, sweet peas demand a well-tended, rich, cool, deep, and moist but well-draining soil, strong support, meticulous training of their fragile, lengthy stems, and consistent picking to flourish. On the other hand, other sturdy flowering annuals such as English marigolds, nigella, clary sage, Californian poppy (Eschscholzia californica) and orlaya require less attention.
In addition to the selection of plants, avoid setting yourself up for disappointment by planting or transplanting immature seedlings into malnourished, compacted, weedy, and cold soil. Rather, now is an ideal moment to prepare it in advance. Providing that the soil isn’t waterlogged or frozen, begin by hand-weeding and hoeing existing beds as early as possible. After a few weeks, allowing any dormant weed seeds in the soil to sprout, hoe these out and then top it up with a thin layer of home-made garden compost to replenish the depleted nutrients.
To increase the soil temperature before sowing or planting, you can consider placing a sturdy black plastic sheet or horticultural fleece on an empty bed and secure it down. This will enhance germination and growth. If you are keen on starting a new vegetable or flower bed, proceed by cutting down or strimming any pre-existing vegetation, extracting the roots of any shrubby plants. Thereafter, apply a cardboard layer and moisten it thoroughly. A final touch entails covering up with a 20cm deep quality topsoil layer, mildly pressed down. Mix in a bit of home-made garden compost or commercial products from Irish businesses like mulch.ie or landscapedepot.ie. The end product would be a sublime seed bed.
This week’s gardening tips:
– The onset of March is an opportune time to plant rhubarb, an exceptionally durable perennial plant which thrives, despite little maintenance, and will persistently produce a delectable crop many years after initial planting.
– Rhubarb flourishes in cool, fertile, moist soil with good drainage, preferably under full sun or light shade. For excellent flavour, consider the long-lasting and late cropping ‘Victoria’, or the delicious and early cropping ‘Timperley Early’.
– March is typically an ideal time of year to split big or overgrown summer-flowering perennial clumps – an excellent method of multiplying your favourite species or propagating plants to gift to loved ones. Utilise a border fork or spade to lift and break these clumps (a sharp saw could be valuable for harder clumps). Quickly reposition them into the earth or continue potting them, ensuring they are labelled and watered plentifully.
Mark your calendars:
– On Wednesday, the 20th of March, from 7.30pm-9pm, there will be a Zoom conference ‘Memoir of a Woodland Garden’, delivered by Michael White, an esteemed gardener, author, propagation expert and former Mount Congreve gardens curator, on behalf of the RHSI. For more information, visit rhsi.ie.
The RHSI Plant Fair 2024 is scheduled to occur at RHSI Bellefield gardens in Shinrone, Co Offaly on Sunday, March 24th. The event, which will run from 11am until 4pm, will also feature tours around the garden led by head gardener Paul Smyth at midday and 2pm. For more information and details, visit rhsi.ie.
Simultaneously on the same day, between 9.30am to 1pm, a workshop titled “Learn How to Grow Your Own Cut Flowers for Free from Seed, Cuttings and Division” will be held by Fionnuala Fallon at The Grinding House, located in June Blake’s Garden, Tinode, Blessington, Co Wicklow. You can book through https://www.eventbrite.com/o/fionnuala-fallon-74563213293, or using the Instagram handle @theirishflowerfarmer.
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