Early spring is my favourite time of year, the emergence of the flowering bulbs fills me with joy as we leave the winter behind. The sweet smell of new life hangs in the air as its time for new beginnings and warm, sunny spring days.

Be mindful not to plant tender plants out too early and ensure that you have hardened off anything that has overwintered in the warmth of the greenhouse, as we may still get a frost. There is plenty to keep you occupied so make the best of the sunny spring days and sow those seeds, plant those plants, generally potter, and generally get your garden ready for the summer months to come.

Magnolias in full flower are one of the great joys of Spring, short-lived, but a great reminder that the cycle of Plant Life is renewed again. Many of us are tempted to plant one only to find out we don’t have the room to let them grow to their mature size. It is of course when they reach maturity that their displays are at their best. A harshly pruned magnolia which is kept trimmed to stop it taking over the garden, can often look very sorry for themselves.

There are varieties that are better suited to the larger garden, Magnolia Heaven Scent being one of them. This large tree / large shrub creates a wonderous spring display of beautiful large pink flowers. At an eventual height and spread of 8-12M though, it needs space and time to get there, and may take 20 years to reach maturity.

Magnolia is a large genus of over 200 flowering plant species in the subfamily Magnolioideae, it is named after French botanist Pierre Magnol. Magnolia is an ancient genus, appearing before bees evolved, the flowers are theorized to have evolved to encourage pollination by beetles. To avoid damage from pollinating beetles, the carpels of Magnolia flowers are extremely tough. Fossilized specimens of Magnolia have been found dating to 20 million years ago, and of plants identifiably belonging to the Magnoliaceae date to 95 million years ago.

Magnolias prefer full sun throughout the year but will also grow well in light shade for part of the day. Some varieties are well suited to growing in containers however they grow best in soil which is slightly acidic or neutral, they do not do well in alkaline, chalky soils.

They are shallow rooting plants, so it’s best not to disturb them once they are established. They will also tolerate neglect well, as they grow well with minimal pruning and not a lot of fuss. If you do need to prune them, it should be done immediately after flowering to ensure that you don’t lose the flowers the following year.

While most of us in Steyning do not have the right conditions for a Magnolia it shouldn’t stop us from admiring them in all their glory.

If you get a chance pop up and see the awesome spring display provided at Nymans Gardens, Handcross. The collection of magnolias is well-known, and one of the property’s spring highlights. The variety ‘Leonard Messel’ was first cultivated at Nymans in the early 1950s, and has since become very popular for planting in domestic-sized gardens.

Jobs to be done in March:
Ornamental Garden:
• A general fertiliser could be applied over borders if felt necessary. If leaves look yellow on shrubs then give them a foliate feed (liquid feed via watering can).
• Aerate lawn with a wire rake if mild and not waterlogged.
• Remove any dead, diseased or damaged growth from trees and shrubs.
• Finish mulching if not done in Autumn.
• Put manure/rose feed around all roses and check for dead, diseased or dying shoots.
• Deadhead bulbs regularly.
• Now is a good time to plant new Perennials and summer-flowering bulbs, top-dress all containers.
• Weed regularly.
• Edge/define all borders if not done already.
• Plant Roses.
• Sow hardy annuals for summer colour.
• Repair damage to lawns if necessary.
• Harden off hardy annuals sown under glass.
• Cut back any remaining growth from herbaceous / grasses left over from the winter.
• Divide summer flowering perennials like astrantia, hemorocallis, hosta etc.
• Coppice dogwoods / willows etc if not done before now.

Vegetable Garden:
• Prune Gooseberries and red and white     currants. Remove deadwood and then spur prune all sideshoots back to 2 – 3 buds from the base. Shorten branch tips by one quarter.
• Direct sow shallots and onion setts.
• Harvest the last of the winter crops and compost any un- diseased debris.
• Sow aubergines, cucumbers, tomatoes and chillies in an indoor heated propagator.