March is a busy time in the gardening year. With temperatures and humidity mercifully on the decrease it’s a pleasure to roll up your sleeves and tidy up some of summer’s unruly growth.

Extended heat wave conditions and little rain have had its toll on many plants with scorching of leaves and defoliation. After trimming and pruning to tidy up a good soak and a dose of a seaweed solution will help plants back on their feet.

Remove spent annuals and dead head annuals to increase flowering and feed fortnightly with a liquid fertiliser.

Camellias sasanqua are getting ready to flower and need to be kept moist and would benefit from a liquid fertiliser high in potassium to help with flowering, make sure they are well mulched as well. You could apply the same treatment to roses about to put on an autumn display.

It’s time to order spring bulbs to plant as soon as it gets a little cooler.  A good tip I picked up from a bulb grower is to double plant when potting up bulbs for a winter/spring display. Fill the pot to 1/3 and add a layer of bulbs, add some more potting mix, another layer of bulbs and then the last third of potting mix. Fertilise and water in well and you’ll be impressed with a wonderfully full display.

Autumn is normally a good time to fertilise, especially flowering shrubs like gardenias and roses to help with the autumn flush. Take care though when fertilising in dry weather as some non organic fertilisers can burn in dry conditions – remember to give all plants a good soaking before and after fertilising.

On the topic of dryness, some soils can become somewhat compacted and even begin to repel water after prolonged periods of dryness. Compacted soil should be aerated with a fork – you don’t have to dig but just push a garden fork in and give it a bit of a rock to and fro. Soil wetting agents to help saturate soils becoming water repellant (hydrophobic) come in a few forms. You can buy a wetting agent concentrate to mix in a watering can and water in or there are also granular products to broadcast and then water in. If pots have been allowed to dry out or if the soil in them is a few years old the same water repellent problem could occur and a wetting agent should be used

St Patrick’s Day on 17th March is traditionally the time to plant Sweet Peas, add some garden lime or dolomite when preparing the soil and try soaking the seeds overnight before planting. Choose a sight with plenty of sun and you'll need a support to 2m for sweet peas.

In the veggie garden it’s time to plant:

Broad beans
Beetroot
Cabbage
Carrots
Coriander
English Spinach
Green Beans
Lettuce
Onions
Parsley
Parsnips
Peas
Radish
Silverbeet



Garlic bulbs