Things to do in late Winter/Early
Spring
•Start planning for the next growing season. Check out the latest gardening magazines and seed catalogues for new plants and ideas.
•Start seeds indoors for annuals such as geraniums (pelargoniums), fibrous begonias and petunias.
•Lift, divide, and replant late-blooming perennials if desired.
•Lime lawns using a ‘prilled’ lime like Dolopril.

Click here for more tips on what to do in February

Looking Ahead to Spring
 by Su Rickett

Gardeners generally tend to be a very forward thinking crowd. We are constantly looking ahead to the next season. For me, the most optimistic part of the gardening year is the planting of bulbs in the Fall. Let’s face it, before they are planted, bulbs and corms are not the most agreeable things to look at. It takes a bit of a leap of faith to take them, dig a hole, put them in the hole, cover them up and then walk away until their little green snouts push through in Spring. Whose crazy idea was this? But for we who garden, it’s a rite of passage. Plan ahead we must. While we are still admiring our Fall displays of smoking hot reds, coppers and yellows, intermingled with the wispy plumes of grasses, thoughts creep in of the softer colours of Spring and the way bulbs will play a huge part in our early garden show.
After last Winter’s lingering chill it seems wholly appropriate to consider early bulbs. That little burst of colour and life adds cheer to a cold day. Snow Crocus are a fantastic investment, they bloom very early in late Winter and are not affected by snow or cold temperatures. Once planted, they return year after year and multiply readily. So a patch planted this year will be considerably bigger in a few years time. Think big and plant in large groups where you have space as these are tiny in stature. They are also the ideal little bulb for tucking into a rock garden. To read more please click here...