Plants for March

In March, weather permitting, we recommend you plant:

This popular deciduous rounded bush produces a mass of star-like white flowers in March and through into April and always makes a great feature plant in any garden.
This variety will grow happily in most neutral to alkaline soils as long as there is sufficient depth to allow the root system to establish freely.
The winter buds are hairy and slightly grey in colour before opening into many distinctive flower.
Given time it will create a neat bush no more than 3 metres high

The famous ‘Bridal Wreath’ is well known for its bright white sprays of flowers produced all along arching branches during March and April.
It is extremely hardy and creates a dense bush throughout the rest of the year with some nice autumn tints when it sheds its leaves for the winter
It will tolerate most soils quite happily if given a position in full sun but can be a little more difficult to grow in very alkaline soils or in shade.
It is well suited to the middle of a border and is always a welcome contender in the all year round colour garden

There will be few gardeners that wouldn’t want to include this shrub somewhere in their realm, with their striking yellow flowers produced in abundance this is a real welcome sight to herald in the spring.
This is best positioned at the back of the border as it is a medium to large shrub but can sometimes be used in an informal hedge, mixed with Flowering Currants and Hawthorn, although it does have a tendency to get leggy over time.
The foliage appears after flowering and is invariably a light green, even lime colour turning darker as the season moves on.
The light brown stems and twigs add further colour in the winter before the flowering commences
It is very tolerant of most soils and positions and will thrive in open beds in good light.

These deciduous plants frequently referred to as ‘Japonica’ have been popular for many years and are one of the best-known spring flowering shrubs to grace many a garden.
The neat, saucer shaped flowers are produced all along the stems and come in many coloured varieties, which can look quite spectacular when they are planted against a wall.
Frequently they will produce large yellow fruits after flowering called Quinces, which can be made into a delicious jam.
The Japonica can also be grown as a shrub although it tends to be slightly erratic in its form and habit.
They are tolerant of moist soils and most positions and, when treated as a fence or wall shrub, it is best to cut out the older wood after flowering.

One of the earliest flowering Rhododendrons with compact growth, which produces a flurry of rosy purple funnel shaped flowers in early March.
As with all Rhododendrons they do thrive in acid soils so it is important to ensure you plant with plenty of ericaceous compost and give regular feeds of sequestered iron.
This makes a nice plant for the patio in a suitable container if the soils in your garden are unsuitable for this plant.
Although an evergreen plant it can shed foliage under particularly hard conditions, so should be given protection with fleece if a particularly hard frost is forecast.

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