Spring Zing
31 Daily Reasons to Love March
Goodbye soggy lawns, mud-caked doormats and grey clouds, March has finally arrived! I can barely contain my excitement, knowing that spring and (hopefully) plenty of blue skies will soon follow. It feels just like welcoming back a long-lost friend who’s turned up on your doorstep, bottle of champagne in hand, eager to share their adventures and photos from all the time you've been apart!
This week, I’ve felt like my garden is chomping at the bit to welcome the new season in too. There’s a cornucopia of Iris reticulata in full flight in a range of varieties, scatters of primrose, snowdrops hovering through the front garden borders and the beaks of bulbs peaking from the soil everywhere I look.
Yep, my garden is calling my name, and with sun promised this weekend, suddenly I feel like the world is brimming with promise, new shoots tantalising me with what’s to come.
This month, the garden (and indeed the gardening!), comes thick and fast doesn’t it: and whilst they say anticipation is half of gardening, suddenly I’ve had enough of watching and waiting. I am beyond ready for the season that transforms EVERYTHING, and I imagine you are too? So, for this month's free newsletter, I thought I'd celebrate by sharing what I'm most looking forward to in the garden. I’m also opening the My Real Gardens gate and dropping the paywall – kind of like a virtual garden open day – so everyone can enjoy what’s inside, just for this weekend. So pull up a chair, feel free to catch up on newsletters past, many of them linked below, and make yourself at home in the MRG virtual potting shed.
So, here’s my gathering up of all the joyful experiences that I’m personally excited about –one for every day of this wonderful month. Don’t forget to share what you’re looking forward to this month in the comments. Let’s get buzzed about what’s coming our way, TOGETHER.
1. The Extra Minutes of Daylight: It’s a wonderful thing indeed that March gifts us with nearly four more minutes of precious sunlight each and every single passing day! By the month’s end, we’ll have gained TWO HOURS of evening light compared to the start of the month! I know I’ll find myself rushing home just a little quicker, knowing that I can squeeze in some garden time after work. There’s nothing quite like that feeling of possibility as the days stretch longer.
2. The First Warm-Enough Day for Tea, Breakfast or even Lunch Outside: I can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to that first moment when I can finally plonk myself down in the garden chair without freezing my bum off! I might be wrapped up in my favourite chunky cardigan, clasping a steaming brew, but my face will be tilted to catch those precious rays, even if my toes are still a bit chilly.
3. Freshly Emerged Spring Bulbs: I’ve been watching my soil like a hawk, and every morning brings new discoveries of whatever green tips have poked up overnight. March only accelerates the growth, building the excitement. Already, there are sprouts of daffodi, Camassia, Allium and tulips burgeoning everywhere I look and yesterday I spotted the first Fritillaria shoots in my borders. Honestly, I actually clapped! We’re now on the downward slope to spring proper, and these daily finds feel like nature’s given me its own advent calendar to enjoy, but with flowers instead of chocolate!
4. Daffodils Dancing in the Breeze: March is when I properly grasp a Wordsworth moment, wandering lonely as a cloud but with secateurs in hand! There’s nothing quite like walking out into the garden to find those nodding yellow heads that weren’t quite open yesterday. My front garden is cluttered with clumps of daffs all over the place and watching them gradually open from tight green buds to full golden trumpets is pure joy.
5. The Return of Birdsong at Dawn: Being woken up at some ungodly hour by what sounds like dozens of avian choirs tuning up outside my window? That’s absolutely fine by me! Instead of pulling the pillow over my head and the duvet a little closer until the heating kicks in, I’ll make our usual morning cuppa a little earlier so my husband Jules and I can just sit and listen – glorious.
6. Checking for Nesting Birds: We have a huge, tall mixed hedge at the bottom of our garden, which is in dire need of a trim. But before I dash down there, electric hedge trimmers in hand, I’ll check if any birds have crept into the birdboxes we installed high in the boughs. Indeed, I’ve taken to creeping up slowly to spy on any feathered coming and goings like some sort of garden detective! It would be such a thrill to see a bird on the wing, carrying a beakful of moss. Here’s hoping.
7. Birds Returning to British Shores: Speaking of birds, this year, armed with my faithful Chirpomatic app (a treasured hangover from those Covid-19 lockdown days), I am determined to learn more about the birds I hear. I’ve been doing my research and March marks the return of our summer migrants. Chiffchaffs are among the first to arrive from their African wintering grounds, filling the air with their distinctive ‘chiff-chaff’ song that gives them their name. Swallows begin their much-anticipated return from early March, just as Sand Martins get ready to skim over lakes and rivers, catching insects. I’d love to catch a sighting of a Wheatear, ground-nesting birds that sometimes use old rabbit holes for their nests, or perhaps even a Blackcap on its return from Africa, sadly both their numbers have sharply declined – one can dream, but isn’t that what Spring is for?! I’ve still so much to learn and feel as though I’m at the bottom of the metaphorical bird mountain, but I’m determined. Perhaps I’ll be a bona fide twitcher yet – whoever would have thought it!
8. Winter Birds Preparing to Leave: While some birds return, others are packing their bags, but not before they have made their presence known. I read that Redwings and Fieldfares are to be found in field hedges in their hundreds at this time of year, chattering away as they fuel up for their journey back to Scandinavian breeding grounds. I understand that the way they move together, an undulating wave of wings against the pale spring sky, is mesmerising. I imagine the flocks exchanging a nod as the winter visitors depart as the summer populations arrive – a bit like watching the changing of the guard in the bird world. Every kind of wonderful.
9. Early Emerging Moths and Butterflies: After last year’s lack of butterflies and bees early in the year, I’m hoping this season things will be different, and my garden will be gifted with flashes of colour everywhere – it would be as if Mother Nature had snuck in and hung her own fluttering, living bunting about the place and across my garden borders. How fabulous would THAT be?!
10. Spring Equinox Magic: March 20th is circled in my gardening calendar, littered with exclamation marks and arrows all around it – not just because day and night hit that perfect balance, but because it’s my personal starting gun for serious seed sowing. Though we lose an hour in bed when the clocks change, we gain precious extra evening gardening time! I’ve already planned which beds I’ll tackle first in that golden evening light.
11. Seed Sowing in Earnest: Finally, it’s time for the ‘The Plant Nursery Takeover’ – every kitchen surface covered with trays, their accompanying aluminium labels glinting in refracted sunshine, safely tucked behind the kitchen windows. The feeling of reaching for my seed tins and beginning to sow, never gets old. I find it deeply satisfying, and also kind of emotional, sprinkling the promise of the future across the surface of peat free. Surely that can’t just be me!
My Annual Manual – It's Sow Exciting!
The moment I spot the weeds growing in my garden, I know that it’s time to indulge in my passion for sowing seeds. Last weekend, I finally gave in to the urge and reached for my beloved seed stash tin. It's a battered, slightly rusty, and dust-covered treasure, tucked away on a shelf in the cold, dark garage. Its contents hold the future flower-filled s…
12. Being as Mad as a March Hare: This phrase, which my husband affectionately (I hope!) uses to describe my mood at this time of year, comes to mind. As I whirl around in my happy spring trance, though I’ve never actually seen it, there must be something wild and wonderful about watching two magnificent hares boxing in what I imagine looks like a bizarre dance-off. A barely contained springtime exuberance that I feel in my own bones.
13. Hearing Children’s Voices Over the Fence: After months of neighbourhood silence, there’s something heart-lifting about the sound of our lane’s children finally being let loose in their gardens again. Their squeals as they rediscover what lies outside their garden doors keeps me company, reminding me of time spent in my own garden with my boys when they were very young. Which always makes me smile. For me, it’s the soundtrack of spring as much as any birdsong.
14. Wood Anemone Carpets: Before the bluebells arrive (although when the time comes, those too), this year I want to plan a walk somewhere to catch the wood anemones in their naturalised splendour. Occurring upon ancient woodland floors, these carpeting blooms close each evening and open with morning light – the woods own alarm clock. One of spring’s quieter but most exquisite scenes, for sure, if you’d like to find out about local sites, visit the Woodland Trust’s website here.
15. Queen Bee Emergence: I confess that I shrieked with joy when I spotted a big fat sleepy queen investigating my crocus just this morning, alongside several honeybees (at least I think she was! She was huge and had a buff bottom!). As a gardener, it’s always exciting to see these first pollinators emerge. They’re absolutely famished after their winter sleep. This year I’ve made sure that my crocus are in pots in prime position where I can see them, whilst providing early food sources for our buzzing friends.
16. Magnolia Buds Preparing to Burst: The magnolia on the road on the way to my studio is absolutely covered in those fuzzy grey buds that look like they’re wearing tiny fur coats. I’ve been checking it daily, waiting for that magical moment when they first begin to crack open. I’m already crossing fingers against a late frost – nothing more heartbreaking than seeing those elegant goblets turn to brown mush!
17. The Scent of Damp Earth Warming: Aaaah, the smell of warm earth in the springtime! Many of March’s gardening jobs find us gardeners on our knees in the border. Will you fess up that you too position your face close to the soil, just breathing in that distinctive earthy fragrance that scientists call petrichor, but I call pure heaven! It’s the smell of life stirring and reclaiming its hold. Having visited Somerset House’s brilliant Soil exhibition last week, from now on I don’t think I’ll find myself sniffing the earth quite so embarrassing!
18. Wild Garlic Carpets: I’ll soon be off around my village’s footpaths, sniffing out where the wild garlic grows in spectacular abundance. That first whiff as you approach – slightly milder than you expect, green and promising – makes my mouth water instantly. I’ve got my pesto recipe ready and waiting!
19. First Cut of the Lawn: I’ve been eyeing my poor bedraggled lawn for weeks now, itching to give it that first cautious trim. That sweet, green scent that hangs in the air afterwards – outright spring! I’ll raise the mower blades nice and high for that initial cut, avoiding the crocus and emerging Tulipa sylvestris foliage all around my lawn’s edges.
20. That Surprising Hot Day When Winter Feels Banished: We all know the one – that random Tuesday when temperatures suddenly soar, and you find yourself frantically searching for last year’s sun hat and wondering if it’s too early to break out the shorts! BLISS.
21. Blossom on Trees: The blackthorn in my hedge has just begun to freckle with white, and it stops me in my tracks every time I go to fill my hotbins with the kitchen peelings. Such a simple thing, but after months of bare branches, those first frothy blossoms feel miraculous. It’s like someone’s thrown handfuls of confetti across the landscape overnight.
22. Pruning with Purpose: Once the temperatures hit that steady 10°C, I can be assured that insects have had time to emerge from their winter hiding places, so I can safely get out there with my secateurs for The Big Border Cut Back in my main garden. I so enjoy those rhythmic snips, the neat piles of debris, and knowing you’re making way for new growth. Miscanthus is first on my list – my battery trimmer cutting through the grasses like butter, before the faded stems hit the compost bin or perhaps this year get chopped, then dropped as a natural mulch straight onto my borders at the back.
23. The Return of Ladybirds: These spotty little allies are worth their weight in gold for keeping aphids in check, and they’ll soon be back! I’ve been known to transport them gently to problem areas like some sort of bizarre ladybird taxi service.
24. Weeding That Actually Ends: Early spring weeding is so much more satisfying than the endless summer battle. An hour spent meditatively clearing a patch, knowing it will actually stay relatively weed-free for at least a couple of weeks, gives me a wonderful gardening smugness. The real onslaught begins as temperatures warm up, so I’ll take these small victories where I can.
25. Planting out my sweet peas: My Christmas sown plants are always ready to go out in March. Hardier than you think, it feels great to know that before I know it, I’ll be tying them safely to their Harrod Horticultural arches and gathering the sweetest scented and swooniest of summer blooms for inside.
26. Waking Up the Dahlias: Talking about sensational flowers, I’ve got my dahlia tubers tucked up in compost filled boxes, like sleeping beauties, in the shed. I’ll choose a fine March day to wake and pot them up, keeping them frost free inside by the kitchen bifolds where I can fuss over them daily. Seeing those first shoots emerge feels like reconnecting with old friends. Just the thought of fistfuls of flamboyant blooms has got me through many a dreary day!
27. Hanging Washing on the Line for the First Time: There’s something triumphant about that first load of laundry flapping in the March breeze instead of draped over every radiator in the house! The smell of sun-dried sheets is better than any fancy fabric conditioner. Small pleasures that make daily chores more of a joy.
28. The Tangy Scent of Tomato Leaves: I deliberately brush my fingers against my tomato seedlings leaves just to release that distinctive smell – summer’s promise in one whiff! I’ve been known to stand in my borrowed greenhouse Gertie, just breathing it in like some sort of horticultural aromatherapy session. That slightly sticky, intensely green fragrance is as much a part of gardening pleasure as the harvesting.
29. Discovering Overwintered Geraniums Sprouting New Growth: I tucked my leggy pelargoniums into the spare bedroom last autumn, and have barely looked at them since, crossing my fingers they’d make it through. Let’s hope that I’ll experience nature’s resilience in action first hand! I’ve never been brilliant at growing pelargonium, but with true gardeners’ positivity, maybe this year is the one!
30. Dividing Perennials: It’ll soon be time for some ‘plant multiplication magic’ dividing overcrowded clumps of perennial plants. The satisfaction of turning one plant into three or four, just to keep them healthy, feels like getting away with something! Plants for free too! If I’ve more than I need, what a pleasure it is to give away the extras to anyone that wants them.
31. Revelling in That Undefinable Spring Feeling: Maybe it’s the quality of the light, or perhaps the way the air feels against your skin, but there’s that undeniable moment in March when everything suddenly feels different. When the garden’s voice changes from a low whisper to a full-blown conversation. Goodness me, heaven knows how much I look forward to a good chat, and I can’t wait for the time to arrive!
My Five Favourite Finds This Week
Every week I share some unexpected discoveries that have caught my eye or brought joy to my gardening day. Here are five spring finds that I’m particularly loving right now. Nothing sponsored, just genuine garden-to-garden sharing:
1. Practical Gardening Wear: I found myself in Dublin last weekend for a speaking engagement and had one of those lovely chance discoveries wandering through the suppliers hall. The Abito overall – think oversized shirt that slips perfectly over your regular clothes when gardening. I was instantly smitten! Have a peek here
2. Spring-Inspired Gin: After a productive day coaxing the garden back to life, there’s nothing quite like celebrating with something equally botanical in a glass! Having surfed the web for the ultimate sun-downer drink, in the coming months, I think Helen Browning’s organic gin from Wiltshire might just fit the bill. It’s made with sea buckthorn and perry pears from their own agroforestry project. Best of all, they offer eco-pouches for refills, which appeals to my gardener’s complete dislike of waste! Treat yourself here
3. Garden Visit Planning: March might be bursting with jobs to do in our own patches, but I like to at least to ponder some other garden visits for the months ahead. The National Garden Scheme’s Yellow Book becomes more and more dog-eared as the year progresses, pages turned down with gardens I’m desperate to visit. Find your own inspiration here
4. Floral Art Exhibition: The Saatchi Gallery in London has put together something that feels tailor-made for garden lovers. Their ‘Flowers – Flora in Contemporary Art & Culture’exhibition runs from 12th February to 5th May and spans two floors with nine gallery spaces. I’ve heard wonderful things about the installation – all exploring our enduring fascination with flowers. More details here Talking about exhibitions, just a reminder about the sensational one on ‘Soil: The World Beneath Our Feet’ I covered in last week’s newsletter. Perhaps you could combine the two?
5. Early Hammock Shopping: You might think me slightly premature with this one, but after thirty years of hammock ownership, I’ve learned an important lesson – the good ones sell out fast! As the first hints of spring appear, my mind has already drifted to those precious moments of horizontal garden appreciation. The Mexican Hammock Company’s Chamool Hammocks are my absolute favourites – lying widthways in one of these is perhaps the ultimate garden pleasure. Don’t miss out here
Before I Go...
Well, that’s my March garden anticipation all wrapped up and passed across to you for us to unfold day by day! Just writing about these simple spring pleasures hasn’t half lifted my spirits and recharged my gardening batteries. It’s made me even more eager to get my hands back in the soil (if that’s possible!) especially with some clear days of sunshine forecast for the next few days here.
Meanwhile, I’d love to hear what you’re most looking forward to in your garden this March – do share in the comments below! Perhaps you’ve spotted signs of spring I’ve missed, or you’ve your own special moment that announces the turning of the season? I’m sure we’d all love to hear.
Meanwhile, if you’re already a paid subscriber? Thank you! Your support allows me the time to create these detailed weekly letters about my garden adventures and discoveries. It means the world to know that these musings from my garden to yours bring you joy and inspiration throughout the year.
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Whatever way you choose to go, I’m genuinely delighted to have you along to share in my gardening joy, and as mentioned, this weekend, I’m lowering the paywall and sharing the whole of the My Real Gardens back catalogue to celebrate the arrival of Spring just for this weekend. I’d love it if you explored what’s in our virtual gardening library here, and let me know in the comments if there’s anything that’s missing that you’d like to know more about.
Meanwhile, whether we’re separated by a garden fence or by continents, there’s something rather special about knowing we’re all watching for those same signs of spring, feeling that same flutter of excitement as March unfolds its promises. Thank you for being here.
Until next week, happy gardening!
Dear dear Ann Marie,
Thank you, thank you. Your letter has cheered me up no end. Lots to think about and share. The bottom half of our garden was flooded on New Years Day and I'm hoping my plants are survivors. My sweet peas are coming up nicely.
Much love to you both
Here's to summer 25
Lesley Parkinson xxx
Gorgeous overshirts - on my list!
Youve done it again 😆