Spring Planting Preparation

Spring is on its way and you can now start preparing your garden.

First thing you can do is check your soil in various spaces of your garden, this can help you decide what plants should thrive in those areas. Take into consideration the soil, where the sun goes, at what time of day and what animals have access through your garden.

You can pick up soil pH testing kits for around £10-£20, just scrape some soil into the pot, add some solution and you should get a colour either red, orange, yellow or green. Green means you have more alkaline soil (8-14) and red would be more acidic (0-7) 

Alkaline soil plants:
Lily of the valley - popular plant that loves alkaline soil.

Polemoniums - pretty flower to bring colour to your garden, loves thick alkaline soil, add mulch to bulk out the soil before planting.

Lavender - adding some depth to your garden, loves to be in the full sun, will add scent and help keep the flies away.

Rosemary and Thyme - both love to be grown in well drained soil in the sunlight, can add scent to your garden and can add to your cooking.

Acidic soil plants:
Magnolias - moist, drained, sunny or slightly shaded area.

Ceanothus - loves a sunny area with acidic soil.

Summer Heather/Calluna vulgaris - is a pretty plant that should thrive in mild acidic soil.

Camellias - These are bright, big and beautiful, thriving in more acidic soil.

Now is a great time to collect up any mulch around the garden and sprinkle over your soil, pad out around your plants to keep them upright, protected and reduce the chance of them drowning when it rains.

There are lots of plants currently available at garden centres for you to start adding colour to your garden including daffodils, tulips and pansies. You can add colour with plant pots too, not just plants.

If you want to save some pennies but bulk out your flower beds and borders, check to see if anyone has any cuttings with roots, bulbs or bare root roses that can be planted and they should soon start to sprout and it won’t be long before they fill out for you to admire.

It is still fairly cold outside with temperatures that keep fluctuating, so anything you want to start growing, you can always start by growing them inside your home, to help get them started. Herbs are always a popular one, as they can be used in cooking, grow fairly quickly and some have some amazing scents like mint to keep an area smelling fresh, mint is also a repellent for most insects, arachnids and even mice. 

You can make use of old egg cartons too by seeding some of your plants in them, old plant pots are popular for children growing their own cress, beans or plants but you might want to make some drainage holes and they won’t degrade like egg cartons will.