As gardeners head into the busiest time of the year, they’ll be looking for ways to guarantee more blooms.
“Spring usually starts to arrive across the country in March and the longer days provide the opportunity for an increasing range of gardening tasks,” says the Royal Horticultural Society.
“It’s time to get busy preparing seed beds and sowing seed, and it’s your last chance to prune roses,” adds the gardening body.
Rose pruning is one of the most essential tasks for improving the health of plants and extending their lifespan.
March is the last chance to prune roses
PEXELSAs the stems of roses harden with exposure to the elements, the vigour of their growth starts to plummet.
Taking out a couple of these stems will redirect the plant’s energy into growing new blooms instead.
Generally speaking, the best flowers grow from the side shoots extending along stems. These are the shoots that need to be trimmed to produce more flowering.
In terms of how the flowers are pruned, the rules change for each variety of roses. The rule of thumb is generally to trim back the plan by roughly 30 to 50 per cent.
“If you haven’t done so already, early March is your last chance to prune your roses,” explained Fiona Jenkins, Gardening expert at MyJobQuote.co.uk.
“Pruning ensures that the plant grows vigorously and encourages healthy blooms. Left unpruned, bush roses would not produce as many flowers and would send out too many branches.”
She continued: “Floribunda and hybrid tea roses are pruned in more or less the same way, by first removing any dead or diseased crossing stems.
“The strongest shoots should be then cut back to between six and 12 inches from the ground. Less vigorous growth can be cut back to about four inches from the base.”
Gardeners should note that pruning at the wrong time will not kill a plant but will damage and weaken its root system.
The worst time to prune flowers is immediately after new shoots appear in the early days of Spring.
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Pruning redirects energy into flowering
GETTY IMAGESGardeners hoping to add a splash of colour to their Spring display are also encouraged to plant flowering bulbs in March.
“Cornflowers, borage or Californian poppies are among the easiest to grow and some of the most colourful,” pointed out Fiona.
“The flowers and leaves of borage are edible, the blooms make a great decoration for a jug of Pimm’s and the bristly leaves can be wilted like spinach.
“A good indication that the ground is warm enough to plant hardy annuals is when you see weed seedlings appear.”