The Gardening Diary

A few weeks ago I advised you to spread sulphate of iron on your lawns. Now your lawn should have turned dark and if you look closely the moss should be black colour.If it is then it is dead and if you can manage to rake it out and remove the dead stuff then do so.Rake up all the rubbish on the surface of the lawn. If you have not done so make the first cut of the season when the weather conditions are dry. The first of the new season should just "top" the grass. Cutting off too much of the grass could damage it this early in the season. During the month if growth takes off increase the frequency of mowing and gradually lower the height of the cut to the normal summer cutting height of about 2 ½ inches, remembering the tighter we cut the more we expose the ground surface to light and encourage weeds.It is also important now to spray for weeds separately or use some of the weed and feed options available from garden centres. Otherwise for larger lawns, Flynn"s should provide you with the necessary applications you will need with good advice.Summer-flowering bulbs - You can never have enough bulbs in the garden and you will become disappointed once all your spring flowering bulbs have finished. Instead, include a few of the summer flowering bulbs like; dahlias, calla lilies, Lily Longiflorium and gladioli to be planted amongst your spring flowering beds.What to look out for... Chaenomeles flowering quince - Native to China and Japan, quinces are often called Japanese quinces or japonica. The simple, five-petalled blooms look a little like apple blossom, but last much longer, from February until early summer. The main flush of bloom usually occurs in April. A profusion of rounded buds unfurl in clusters along the twiggy stems producing flowers in pure white, the palest of pinks, coral, flame and darkest scarlet, depending on the variety.Most varieties are forms of these three types - Chaenomeles speciosa, C. japonica and their hybrid, C. x superba. The largest and most vigorous members of the family are large shrubs up to 3m (10ft) tall and wide. These are best positioned in a semi-wild part of the garden, or within a mixed informal hedge and left to their own devices.One of the most decorative ways of using ornamental quince is as a wall plant. With a little initial effort, a plant can be trained as a fan against a vertical edge by regularly tying its shoots to horizontal wires. A finished specimen is easily maintained, needing only a summer trim to cut back any badly placed shoots near their base. The flowering quince can be seen in full bloom in the walled garden now. What to do this week...Hanging baskets for Mother"s Day - What a great way to surprise your nearest and dearest on March 22nd with a gift you have prepared yourself - and it will last a lot longer than a bunch of flowers.Spring baskets are different and usually more striking if planted with one or two colours with bulbs added. Now what you will need for a springtime mix, think about white with splashes of yellow - "White Perfection" violas or leucojums (snowflakes) with tiny "Tete a Tete" daffodils, for instance, or golden "Sunbeam" violas with white "Thalia" dwarf daffodils amid a carpet of starry white Anemone nemorosa.If you"re after more colour, going for blue rather than pinks or purples keeps the look fresher and more contemporary. Choose from sky-blue scillas, dwarf iris such as Iris reticulata "Springtime" or "Cantab" and a sprinkling of grape hyacinths in tight blue bud that will extend the life of the arrangement into later spring.Remember that you will need to plant more plants and bulbs to make up for the slow growth of the spring basket so bulk up.For an average-sized wirework basket of 14 inches in diameter, you might need as many as 12-18 small viola plants and eight to 10 small pots of bulbs to create a full, all-over arrangement with instant impact. Place your liner with a few cut slips into the container. Don"t overfill with compost at the start of planting because the plants will fill most of it up. Water well before filling in any bare patches with compost and moss or interweaving with ivy. Hang in a sunny, sheltered spot or undercover outdoors, as spring hanging baskets are vulnerable to frost and cold winds.Grow your own vegetablesFitting in vegetables into borders - If your garden is too small to accommodate a kitchen plot don"t worry you can mix them through your flower and shrub borders. Any space you have, dig it to a good depth. Place some well-rotted manure or organic enrichners and add a few handfuls of organic fertilizer in too. You can sow radish, lettuce, carrots, spinach, and herbs, which, of course are the easier option to fit into a border scheme because most have very decorative leaves or flowers. Try chives or parsley as an edging plant, or thyme, marjoram and pennyroyal to tumble over the sides of the path, be careful with the likes of fennel and lemon they can become a nuisance due to their vigorous growing. At KinderGarden our junior gardeners have just sowed, carrots, shallots, onions and garlic into the raised beds of the potager in Belvedere Walled Garden. Thanks to Foxes Fruit and Vegetables for providing samples of the finished articles.Outdoor sowings - Crops to sow outdoors or under cloches include broad beans, beetroots, Brussels sprouts, summer cabbages, leeks, lettuces, hardy peas and radishes. Cover rhubarb with forcing jars or old buckets to exclude light and encourage long tender stalks.