March in the garden

by Graham Mitchell

The daffodils are out, and it’s feeling warmer with the sun higher in the sky and longer daylight hours. Spring officially starts on the vernal equinox on 20 March, and the clocks go forward on 26 March. Spring may have sprung but we are not out of the woods yet. Gardeners need to keep an eye on the weather forecasts and put off jobs if the conditions aren’t right. We can still get very cold snaps for next couple of months.

It is a good time to mulch beds if the soil is damp. As well as keeping weeds down and adding nutrients, a dark coloured mulch will help to warm the soil up. Avoid spreading the mulch up around the stems of plants though.

Hopefully you’ll have a good display of spring bulbs, that you planted in autumn, coming into flower. When finished, dead head but leave the leaves despite being straggly. They will add reserves to the bulb for next year.

The weed battle is now on, so keep on top of the weeding. When weeding, use a hand-fork or if dry use a hoe. Avoid using a hoe when it is damp as weeds will tend to re-root. Inspect new growth on susceptible plant and remove any aphids as soon as possible.

Check your seed packets as you can now sow hardy annuals such as poppies and nasturtiums, and broad beans and parsnips in the vegetable patch. You can also plant out hardy vegetable seedlings such as beetroot, peas, and lettuce. Make sure they are a good size first and cover with horticultural fleece.

Time also to put in your early potatoes such as “Swift” and “Rocket”, you’ll be able to harvest end of June. If you are stretched for space, half fill a 25mm pot with compost. Plant a seed potato and as the shoots grow keep covering with more compost. When the tubers are ready, just tip the pot out!

Lawns do wonders for our wellbeing. That’s why we’ve devised three programmes of year-round treatments to keep your grass a cut above.

From controlling weeds to bringing out the green, we’ll help you to look after the lawn that looks after you.

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In view of rising house prices, is there a way to get extra Inheritance Tax allowance?

Q: I was happy that my Will would be tax efficient for my family when I die, but with the massive rise in house values over the past couple of years I am wondering whether I need to reassess things. A friend of mine said he had heard there was a way to get an extra IHT allowance. What is the current threshold, and is there a way to get extra allowance?

A: Firstly, it worth saying that everyone should regularly reassess and, if necessary, update their Will, as changes in legislation and personal circumstances can affect your wishes and intentions.

The rise in property values is a big consideration at the moment. Due to this and a freeze on the IHT threshold, it is predicted that families are set to pay out record amounts in inheritance tax this year. Certainly, the Treasury took £5.3billion in death duties in the nine months from April to December 2022, up by £700million on the same period in 2021.

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Currently the first £325,000 of inheritance is tax free and IHT is payable at 40% on anything above that. As the threshold has not changed since 2009, the families of those people who have not reassessed their assets and the way they leave them in more recent times could be in for a nasty shock when they die.

Whilst the threshold has not changed, there have however been other changes to inheritance legislation, for example an additional IHT allowance of £175,000 when property is left to ‘direct descendants’ (children and grandchildren), and the transfer of unused nil rate band from one spouse to the other.

Fortunately, with some astute planning it is still possible to produce a Will that conforms to your wishes whilst also being tax efficient for your estate, so it is worth getting advice from an expert lawyer and updating your Will if you have not done so recently.

This question has been answered by Victoria Wilson, a Partner with GHP Legal. If you would like to speak to someone about this or any other legal matter please visit our website www.ghplegal.com and use the contact us form, or call us on: Wrexham 01978 291456, Llangollen 01978 860313, Oswestry 01691 659194