You can still be sowing hardy annuals this month, including snapdragons, corncockle, phlox, clary sage, cornflower, scabious, larkspur. Download our guide to 10 of our favourite hardy annuals to sow now for information, advice and inspiration.
Pot up dahlias if you have space to keep them somewhere frost-free. They don’t need light at the moment so a garage or shed is fine. Plant tubers into damp compost and they won’t need watering again until you see shoots, unless the compost dries out completely.
If you want to cut narcissi for the house, you can do so at what we call ‘crook-neck’ stage. This is when the calyx (the papery skin which covers the bud) has cracked open and the bud is pointing downwards. Cutting at this stage will give you the longest vase life and they will quickly open up indoors. Narcissi need to be put into their own bucket of water and given at least 6 hours for the glutinous sap to drain. After that they can be used mixed in with other flowers.
Don’t forget the pots and plants under cover still need watering, despite the incessant rain we have been having.
Now is a good time to plant trees and shrubs and divide perennials.
Clumps of snowdrops are at the perfect point for dividing now and replanting ‘in the green’.
Prick out seedlings as soon as you can handle them – you do not need to wait until they get true leaves. The younger seedlings are the less shock they suffer from transplanting.
Feed seedlings as they grow – a general purpose seaweed either in their water or sprayed on the leaves is ideal.
Watch out for aphids – they are already all over roses and in polytunnels and greenhouses. Keep on top of them by squishing, knocking off (but they do need removing) spraying with a soap based solution or importing ladybirds.
Prune, feed & mulch roses now. When pruning roses, clean your secateurs between plants with a sanitiser, bleach or disinfectant to avoid the spread of disease.
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