The splendour of spring arrives and the garden awakes!
Jonathan Webster, Curator at RHS Rosemoor, shares his love of spring gardens, some plants that he really would not do without and some top tips and gardening advice to get us back in the garden!
Spring is one of my favourite times of year - after a lot of tidying up over winter, the garden is ready for all the plants to burst into life again and start the spring spectacle with colourful flowers and lush foliage, with a sense of freshness and hopefully a change in the weather!
Every year still has a sense of expectation, as most plants are very reliant on our variable weather which can help or hinder their flowering display. Although we constantly talk about our changing weather - a very British thing to do - this great climate of ours is the key to the wide range of plants we are able to grow from all over the world.
The first sign of spring to me is the vibrant and often colour-clashing flower power provided by some of our garden favourites - camellias, rhododendrons and magnolias. The majority are native to the Northern hemisphere and characterise the typical English woodland garden. These plants come from many countries, including China, the Himalayas and Japan; they have been a staple of British horticulture since they were first introduced by intrepid plant hunters scouring the world in search of interesting plants to grace our gardens.
The Westcountry has a long history of many famous gardens focusing on these plants. They benefit from our moister climes which aids their growth and flowering, mimicking their often native woodland or mountainous habitat. At RHS Rosemoor we grow a huge variety of these gems. Many we plant under a light tree canopy to protect them from sharp spring frosts which can damage their flowers and once these trees are in leaf, they protect and shade them during hotter summer months.
With so many of these gems to choose from, these are some I would not do without:
Camellia x williamsii ‘Saint Ewe’ with vibrant single pink flowers - it arose from breeding work at Caerhays Castle in Cornwall in the 1920s by John Charles Williams and was named after the nearby village of St Ewe. This is a reliable flowerer, quite often starting in November and continuing until April.
Rhododendrons are one of the most colourful groups of plants. This is a very large plant family and one of my favourite groups of Rhododendrons are the evergreen azaleas. From Japan, these are so vibrant in colour, from pure whites, shocking oranges to vibrant reds, when planted in bold groups they provide a spectacle of pure flower power with all the leaves hiding below. Rhododendron ‘Hino-crimson’, with lush green foliage adds to the garden throughout the year and has bright crimson flowers in spring.
A very special plant, Magnolia campbellii is not for a small garden, this graceful flowering tree from the Himalayas produces stunning pink to white flowers the size of dinner plates. It is one of the first magnolias to flower and if not planted in a nice sheltered spot can get caught by a frosty night.
Top Tips for March and April
Dividing your herbaceous perennials
Most benefit from division every two to three years to maintain health and vigour. For the purposes of propagation, the task can be done more regularly. These will soon come into growth, mulch and water to help them settle in.
Pruning for colourful stems
When some shrubs are pruned hard, they regrow vigorously, producing more colourful stems that brighten up the garden in winter. If left, over time they will become less dramatic. Allow the maximum time to enjoy these colourful stems - shrubby Cornus and willows are typically pruned from late March to mid-April, just as the new growth is developing.
Seed sowing outdoors
Many vegetables, annuals, biennials and herbaceous plants can be grown from seed sown outdoors. The secret to success is to prepare a good seedbed, free of weeds with a crumble-like soil-surface texture. As long as the soil is warm and moist, seed will germinate quickly. In practice, this usually means either mid-spring to early summer (April-June). If you can provide the crop with protection, such as cloches or fleece, sowing can begin in early spring.
Repairing lawns
Patches in lawns can appear for a number of reasons and when they do, it is always advisable to repair them. Re-seeding or turfing bare patches will prevent weeds germinating, and of course, it looks much better. Lawns are best repaired in spring or autumn, when the weather is damp and cool, as the lawn is most likely to recover well in these conditions.
Jonathan Webster
Curator
RHS Rosemoor