Garden Tasks for March

-Mowing mowing mowing on repeat!!
-Weeding is still a big job – the pesky Kikuyu runners are out of control through garden beds at the moment and I have resorted to using Fuselaid (selective herbicide) to spray out garden beds where there are not monocots (grasses) growing. The Fuselaid will kill off the grass and make it a lot easier to pull out by hand.  

-Continue to pick or dead head Dahlias to promote more flowering. 
-As we hopefully have some cooler days, spread organic animal manure fertiliser just before rain
-Start preparing beds for the planting season.
-Cut back dead flowers on Agapanthus and Canna Lilies.
– You can also start dividing Agapanthus, Society Garlic
-Sow Sweet Peas seed on St Patrick’s Day in March.
– Plan for upcoming planting season (See following blog post )
– Laying lawn – you still have time to lay or seed any lawn areas. The key to laying lawn is preparing the areas first.
– Plan your spring flowering bulbs planting and start sourcing where you will purchase yours from. I’m definitely going to plant some double flowering Daffodils.  For a comprehensive list of information about planting bulbs go to my blog post here  
– In the veggie garden the summer crops are starting to look a bit tired and need to be ripped out. Start planting out your cool season crops like broccoli, cauliflower, leeks, beetroot, carrot
-I will also be planting out my garlic – try to source locally grown bulbs
-Complete a tidy and light maintenance prune on your roses (see article link above)
-Make a plan for fertilising all of your gardens and lawn areas in late March or Early April. Work out which fertiliser will be best for your plants and lawn. Calculate how much you need and where to buy it from. I would normally recommend to use an organic composted animal manure blend. Something like Yates Organic Dynamic Lifter or Rooster Booster. Ideally you should water your garden before fertilising and ideally you have it spread before a nice shower of rain hits. Using a soluble fertiliser like Eco Seaweed on the garden will also give your plants a good Autumnal boost.
After fertilising, aim to mulch the garden areas. I always think of mulching in autumn as the time to put a nice thick layered blanket over your garden so it is tucked in tight for the cooler winter months that are coming. Now early in the season you can start sourcing what mulch to use and how much you need.