March garden tasks with Modeste Herwig: pruning, planting and caring
The days are getting longer and the first ornamental plants are starting to bloom. What a joy to finally get back into the garden, isn’t it?
Spring clean-up
As the first perennials begin to sprout, it's the perfect time for a good spring clean. Remove dead plant material and fallen leaves from flower beds, preferably with a leaf rake. Cut the stems into small pieces and spread them among the plants or place them on the compost heap.
Pruning roses
Bush roses are pruned in March to encourage abundant flowering. Remove dead wood and branches growing inwards. Keep a few strong, well-spaced stems and cut them back to three to five buds from the base. A bud is a small pink shoot that is already visible on the stem. Use sharp secateurs and cut at an angle about one centimetre above an outward-facing bud. This method applies to hybrid tea roses, floribundas and miniature roses. Standard roses are pruned the same way, starting from the graft point at the top of the stem.
Pruning clematis
Before pruning a clematis, it's important to know which pruning group it belongs to, depending on its flowering time.
The Three pruning groups
- Group 1: Early flowering on last year’s growth – e.g. Clematis alpina, C. armandii, C. macropetala, C. montana. Prune lightly just after flowering. Remove dead or weak stems. Every two years, cut a few old stems back to the ground to rejuvenate the plant.
- Group 2: Early to mid-season flowering on last year’s growth, with large flowers like 'Nelly Moser'. In early spring, only remove dead or weak stems. In summer, cut back spent stems just above a bud below the flower.
- Group 3: Late flowering on this year’s growth – including small-flowered herbaceous varieties like C. recta, C. tangutica and C. viticella. In March, cut back all stems from the previous year to 40–60 cm above ground level, just above a strong bud.
March Gardening Tip
Pruning Evergreen Ground Covers
The foliage of evergreen ground covers can look a bit ragged after winter. Prune back the old leaves just before new shoots appear using sharp hedge shears. This applies, for example, to:
March Flowering Plants
- Caucasian forget-me-not — Brunnera macrophylla ‘Jack Frost’
- Camellia — Camellia varieties
- Glory-of-the-snow — Chionodoxa luciliae
- Tommasini's crocus — Crocus tommasinianus
- Lenten rose — Helleborus orientalis
- Primrose — Primula vulgaris
- Lungwort — Pulmonaria saccharata
March Garden Tasks
Planting and Sowing
Pruning and caring
- Prune summer-flowering shrubs such as roses, buddleia and panicle hydrangeas
- Trim ivy walls
- Cut ornamental grasses down to about 10 cm from the ground
- Remove old foliage from ferns and evergreen ground covers
- Prune lavender, leaving a little foliage
Feeding and Protecting
Text: Modeste Herwig.
