Do the garden workout this March

Did you know that an hour of gardening burns about 300 calories so now is the time to get outdoors and spend a few hours in the fresh air. Award winning garden designer Jo Manfredi-Hamer has given us her tips on what we should be getting done this month.

Weeding to get your blood pumping:

I’ve been out in the garden this week weeding between plants and tidying remaining leaves from the ground (leaves are great snail/slug hiders). Take care not to weed out annuals which have self-seeded giving you lovely new plants for the Spring eg forget- me-nots, cosmos.

Calorie burning bulbs:

You could also plant summer-flowering bulbs now (gladioli, lilies). Why not invest in a good bulb planter? They have measurements on the side so you know how deep you are planting. Bulb packets usually say how deep to plant.

Veggie mania:

Bend from the knees 1, 2, 3 and plant those shallots and early potatoes (wait for April for the main crop).

Divide and conquer:

Now is also the time to lift and divide those perenials that are getting out of hand. You’ll get some free plants out of it to plant elsewhere in the garden.

Dig it:

Don’t forget to dig out some of the compost from the top of containers and replace with fresh compost. If pot-bound you’ll need to re-pot.

Prune with attitude:

Dogwoods need cutting down to size if you want to see a dazzling Winter stem display. Yes, I know the’re looking great but if you don’t prune them now next Winter you’ll have inherited an overly large shrub with less colour.

Prune shrub and climbing roses too.

Jo Manfredi-Hamer is founder of Jo Manfredi-Hamer Garden Design