A MONTH ROOTED IN FOLKLORE

Mike Burks, Managing Director, The Gardens Group

At the time of writing, it feels like we have had a long, long winter, cold for many weeks and it’s been very wet in March. It feels like we deserve some warmer weather so that we can get on in the garden, but when that comes there will be a temptation to think that we need to pay no heed to the weather from then on. It is, however, a time when we need to pay very close attention to what’s happening. This is proven by the number of bits of gardening folklore on the subject, many of which refer to nudity in the garden!

First up is the saying ‘if you can sit on the ground with your trousers down then it’s safe to sow your seed’, which when reading the line you may be forgiven for thinking it isn’t anything to do with gardening! But I can assure you it is and it refers to it being warm enough to sow crops if the ground is warm enough to sit on… but only with a bare bot!

Another saying refers to ‘the best husbandmen who would have the seedsman of turnips to be naked when he sows them and this which he doth is for himself and his neighbours’. I guess that the appreciation from the neighbours depends on their personal taste, but the idea again is that if it’s warm enough to be outside and naked then it’s warm enough for seed sowing. thegardensgroup.co.uk

‘A pinch of dust in March is worth a King’s ransom’ refers to it being a huge benefit if there is a dry enough spell in that month to get crops sown – this time without nakedness - and then ‘Ne’er cast a clout until May is out’ suggests not to even think about getting one’s clothes off in the garden at least until June.

This is all because there is still a chance of a frost until the end of May and so gardeners beware of putting tender plants out too early without some form of protection. This protection can come from the use of horticultural fleece, which is a lightweight, breathable material that needs to be draped over plants and will keep them frost-free.

But with an eye on the weather forecast and such protection, when necessary, May is a really great month in the garden with a vast array of plants that can be planted out to give wonderful colour, clouds of scent and a food source for pollinating insects. Such plants can be used in the border or in pots or hanging baskets.

All will need to be watered regularly and not allowed to dry out. Regular feeding too with a flowerpromoting fertiliser will keep them flowering and as the flowers begin to go over, they should be picked off (deadheading) so more will be provided by the plants.

If in pots with peat-free composts, then feed more regularly than you would normally do with peat-based composts. The fertiliser ‘Boost’ has been designed specifically for peat-free composts and will give excellent results.

It’s also a busy time in the fruit and vegetable garden with lots of sowing of seeds and planting of young plants which will romp away given the rising temperatures and the higher light levels.

And then if you’re thinking about the workload that this might create, why not take part in ‘No Mow May’ and so give the lawnmower and yourself a rest? Take time though to watch how your lawn starts to burst into life with flowering clovers, self-heal, bugle and vetches providing wonderful food sources and habitats for insects, so benefitting the environment as a whole.

So, it’s a busy month, but as in the words of the song ‘You don’t have to take your clothes off to have a good time’, which was definitely written about gardening.