Fresh compost and food will give plants an early-year boost
A job that’s been getting closer to the top of my extensive and regularly extended ‘to do’ list is to give our potted shrubs some love.
I am a huge fan of seasonal flower containers that bring life and light to the garden during even the darkest days (I’m looking at you, my stalwart viola-and-cyclamen-filled creation), but there is something more solidly dependable about more long-term plantings.
This endlessly grey, drab winter has been brightened by our little container skimmia, while visitors have been greeted at the front door by the knockout (in a good way) fragrance of a Sarcococca confusa.
It is still a small shrub, but its little white flowers pack the scented punch of a much larger plant and its arrival coincided perfectly with the slow, sad demise of another brilliant winter-perfumed plant, a Coronilla glauca citrina that filled the whole front garden with an intoxicating fragrance.
I could find no obvious reason why the Coronilla turned up its yellow-flowered toes, but while we have mourned its departure, its removal has given us scope to have fun with the border where it grew.
But I digress… long-term container plantings such as shrubs and potted herbs can either be re-potted now or topdressed to set them up for the growing season.
If your shrubs need moving to larger containers, or you are planning to move them into the soil, water them well the day before starting work as this will make it easier to slide them from their pots without the roots sticking to the sides and tearing.
Once they are out, check the roots are healthy and free of pests such as vine weevils. You may want to consider root pruning your plants, using clean, sharp secateurs to remove around 5cm (2in) of thin and feeder roots.
According to RHS research, this can encourage new root growth, help prevent roots circling the pot and help plants re-establish better after replanting.
This year I am weeding and topdressing ours, simply removing the uppermost layers of compost, adding some granular fertiliser and refilling the container with fresh peat-free multipurpose compost.
Remember to water your plants after re-potting or topdressing, and make sure they are raised off the ground so excess water can escape.
Four potted shrub jobs to do now
1. Re-potting shrubs is a good time to assess their overall health and make sure their roots are healthy and pest-free.
2. Root pruning can encourage new root growth and help trees re-establish better after re-potting or replanting.
3. I always add some granular fertiliser before topdressing shrubs with compost and watering well.
4. Weed and trim alpine containers and top their refreshed compost with gravel, which looks attractive and helps drainage.
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