Spring 2023Gardening tips for spring

About the writer

Silvana Devine is a social and therapeutic horticulture practitioner at Petrus Incredible Edibles Rochdale (PIER) which is a community allotment on Belfield Road in Rochdale.

Petrus Incredible Edibles Rochdale (PIER), is homelessness charity Petrus’ Community Allotment located on Belfield Road in Rochdale. It’s a beautiful, relaxing and therapeutic piece of land that grows fruit and vegetables and a member of the wider Incredible Edibles network, representing Rochdale. Their vision is to create kind, confident and connected communities through the power of food. As a team, we wanted to share some of the tips and tricks we’ve picked up along the way.

Lawns

If you are lucky enough to have a lawn, rake out moss and dead grasses ready for the growing season. Lots of dead material can be removed by scarifying. Be mindful that the lawn will look worse than it did before scarifying, but it will recover and be much improved as the grass starts to grow.

Mulching

One of the most important things any gardener can do to prepare for the growing season is mulching. Mulch is any material that is spread or laid over the surface of the soil and used as a covering. Weed borders and raised beds before adding mulch, which can be organic matter like well-rotted fam manure, chipped bark, or here at PIER our own garden compost. Mulching will ensure your soil retains moisture and will reduce the amount of weeding later in the season.

Pruning

If you haven’t done so, prune shrub and bush roses. You should not prune ramblers in spring as you will lose this year’s flowers. Only tackle rambling roses (like Rambling Rector) if they have got completely overgrown and need an overhaul.

As a rule for pruning shrub and bush roses, firstly remove any dead wood, and then remove any shoots that are crossing (or will cross when they grow). Think about the shape you wish to achieve too. Roses are quite hardy, so don’t worry too much about making a mistake. Remember, the more severe the pruning, the more vigorous the growth.

If you have a Buddleia in your garden, these should be pruned at this time of year too. Buddleias are extremely hardy, so if you wish to increase your stock, simply use some of the thinner discarded pruned branches and pop these into a pot of compost and leave outside to take root.

At PIER, we have used prunings to increase the number of Buddleias at the allotment with great success.

Plants for free

At PIER, we have a limited budget so we are always looking for ways to get more plants without spending the earth! Spring is a good time to take cuttings from hydrangeas. Take stem-tip cuttings of new, non-flowering shoots (about 4 inches long). Remove the leaves at the bottom and leave one pair. Cut these leaves in half to reduce the leaf size. Place in a 9cm pot filled with peat-free compost and perlite. For a 9cm pot, you can have four or five cuttings around the edge of the pot.

Another way of increasing your plant stock is dividing perennial plants. It is best to wait for the last frost before doing this, but plants such as; Agapanthus, Eryngiums, Hostas, Iris, Primulas and Verbena to name but a few, can all be divided and moved to increase the impact of them in your borders.

Plan ahead

Spring will soon run into summer, so now is a good time to start thinking about what you want to grow. Petrus’ PIER Community Allotment is open Tuesday afternoons, Thursday and Fridays so come and visit us to see what’s growing.