March in the garden…

 

We suspect the rhubarb is trying to take over the world… above you can see how it looked at the start of the month, and when you reach the end of the post you will be able to see quite how much it’s grown in just those few weeks. We’re looking likely to have a LOT of rhubarb to enjoy this year, and we suspect we will have to divide the crown in the autumn. 

Anemones in the front garden

Sowing has started this month too - the peas straight into the soil (naughtily in the same place as last year as they do work rather well there) and various other things in pots. First to pop their heads up after an early in the month sowing were the sunflowers - we’re on a mission to get some good tall ones this year after next door grew some absolute MONSTERS in 2025! We’ve got several varieties to try so we’re planning to do a second sowing in a few weeks to try and prolong their season a bit too. We’ve also now got a selection of tomatoes sown, plus sweet peas, some radishes and the first lots of herbs - sage,  chives and parsley. 

We’ve made a few purchases this month - the first batch of compost of the year, a bag of vermiculite ready for the main seed sowing, some seeds for varieties of things we needed to top levels up on (my favourite Minibel tomatoes, the Burpless Tasty Green cucumbers we have found good, and the Tromboncino squash I have been wanting to try, plus some other odds and ends that appealed including Black Cumin which will be interesting). Also one of the Potting tables on special offer in the middle of Lidl - £19.99 with the Plus app, we felt we had nothing to lose to give it a try. There were a few minor glitches in the building of it, but nothing insurmountable, and once constructed it feels surprisingly sturdy. It’s the perfect height for seed sowing as well - I’m already finding it really useful. Also from Lidl was a couple of metal trellis pieces - yet to find a home. 

Towards the end of the month there was more work done on the repainting of the office and shed - we’ve had to put that on hold through the winter as it’s been so damp we couldn’t sand the areas that need prepping for painting, we need to get through as much as possible now though so the mini greenhouse can be set up ready for the seedlings. 

The other useful thing we have discovered is that our local branch of a well known DIY chain known for it’s orange branding have a box in their entrance for recycling of plastic plant pots - and it’s surprising how often something which someone else has viewed as rubbish proves to be treasure as far as we’re concerned! We’ve gained several pots which will be perfect for tomato plants, and a whole load of useful module trays too which are already coming in handy. A donation dropped into the charity box means that everyone wins!   

There - rhubarb with ideas of world domination, see! Apparently a lot of people are reporting prolific early growth this year, so it’s not just us. I reckon by the time I write next month’s post, we’ll have had our first harvest from it! 

Robyn