By Isle of Wight Observer
The weather has certainly been a mixed bag over the last month. We’ve had some lovely days but, just recently, we’ve also had some shockers, with yet more heavy rain and damaging winds. ‘Will it ever stop?’ I ask myself.
Those of you who have free draining soil may well have been able to take advantage of the drier conditions, and started preparing your vegetable beds for the season ahead. For those of us not so lucky, we’ll just have to wait a bit longer.
As you will have seen, the first flowers of the year have appeared. Snowdrops, early daffodils, and crocus have started to bloom.
Tree blossom is also visible with catkins and willow and, of course, the stunning yellow blooms of the mimosa. A sure sign that spring is on its way.
There are, of course, always jobs that can be done in the garden. If you are fortunate enough to have a heated greenhouse, you can begin sowing seeds. If you don’t have a heated greenhouse, you can still start your seeds off on a south-facing window sill or, if you have an electric propagator, you could utilise a conservatory.
However, just be mindful of sowing too early, as the young seedlings will draw towards the light. Once germinated they will need potting up and given plenty of light, while still protecting from the cold. Better to delay sowing by a week or two, despite that itching desire to get started!
If you want to have a go at taking cuttings from your dahlias, then this is the perfect time to set them up in the greenhouse; you will need to have a heated greenhouse or, ideally, a propagator or heat mat.
Within a few weeks you’ll be taking cuttings. Autumn-sown sweet peas would benefit from having their tops pinched out, removing the lead growth down to two pairs of leaves.
This will encourage the side shoots to grow. They will then be ready to plant out from late March. More gardening advice and top tips next month!