by Rob Batchelor, Property Manager at Buxted Park Hotel
I am Rob Batchelor, Property Manager at Buxted Park Hotel. This is the perfect time to start getting your garden prepared and ready, so follow my helpful tips to help you get there!
Prepare the greenhouse
Give the greenhouse a tidy up, clean and pressure wash it down to get rid of potential pests and diseases.
Buy your bulbs and seeds
The last of plant plugs, bulbs and seeds can be ordered from catalogues or picked up from garden centres, hardy annuals such as cosmos and poppies can be sown in early March to give them a head start.
Check your brackets
It is sensible to check hanging basket brackets to ensure soundness as the swaying of a heavy basket will loosen fixings.
Prepare your shrub beds
Here at Buxted Park, we have been doing a lot of remodelling to our out grown shrub beds. It looks drastic at the time, but once dug over (incorporating leaf mould before replanting and mulching) it will look so much better.
Make the most of the damp conditions
Where the shrubs have overhung grass areas or patchy lawns, these can be raked over and grass seed applied to make the most of the damp conditions.
Plant hedging
We have planted almost 2km of hedging here over the last four years and in early March we will be planting the last for the season. The ground is sprayed well in advance and cleared to reduce competition and ease planting. On the day of planting, the shrubs are kept under wraps until the last moment, then soaked in a bucket of water so the fine roots don't dry out and are ready to grow. Canes and clear spirals are used to support plants and create a mini greenhouse affair.
Service electricals
Lastly, make sure you get your mowers and strimmers serviced before the rush, the grass starts growing very soon.
