The presenter of BBC Gardeners’ World has shared some handy tips
Monty Don, a beloved horticulturist and lead presenter of Gardeners’ World, has shared a job ideal for March. And with the beginning of the month just around the corner, it’s time to get cracking.
As part of a “monthly gardening checklist”, BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine has said that now is the time to jot down your ideas. Its website urges people to “tidy up borders” and “remove established and newly-germinating weeds.”
In a video on the same website, Monty Don shows how to remove weeds by hand. And in the step-by-step guide, he said that the March job is probably easier than you think.
He explained: “The important thing to realise is that weed is simply a plant in the wrong place.”
Looking at a weed amongst peonies, he notes that there are nettles, dandelions and chickweed all growing around it – and these are all types of weeds. To get rid of them, “you need an implement of some sort.”
Showing a small, curved tool, he stresses: “Quite honestly, anything will do. What matters is getting in there.”
He takes the sharp tool, gently goes under the plant, and pulls out its roots. Easy.
While some weeds can take a while to appear, others can grow easily and spread quickly. On the topic of chickweed, experts at RHS note that gardeners need to remember “chickweed seeds spread easily on muddy boots and in topsoil and garden compost, so pay attention to good garden hygiene, and avoid moving soil from a patch where you have allowed chickweed to grow.”
When it comes to dandelions, the RHS suggests that gardeners with borders and beds “might want to limit their numbers if they are growing small or young plants that could be swamped or outcompeted by dandelions.”
And touching on stinging nettles, the experts say there is actually some “good news” as people “can easily control the spread of stinging nettles by deadheading and removing seedlings.”
Monty says: “It’s very important to do it now so they don’t seed and they don’t take over. The other thing about weeds is to do it a little bit at a time.
“Do one metre properly, and that’s far better than doing 10 metres half-heartedly.”
When it comes to these pesky plants, the Gardeners’ World website also notes that you should “clear old crops and weeds from the veg plot, then dig over the soil, mixing in compost as you go.”
Another March job is to “dig over any gaps in borders, removing the roots of perennial weeds.” You can watch Monty Don’s guide to weeding here.
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