News and Events

March is the first month of Spring, longer and brighter days at last! There are likely to be some cold weeks but overall the average daily temperature will be increasing, encouraging our gardens into life again.

Plants to buy or enjoy in March

Herbs: Seek out small herb plants to pot up in containers near your back door

Young bedding plants: Look for good value young bedding plants to grow-on in your greenhouse, until they can be planted out.

Some plants to enjoy: Bergenia, Camellia, Daphne, Hellebores, Primroses.

General garden maintenance

• If dry enough, mow lawns and re-cut the edges with a half-moon edging tool
• Dig out a small pond to attract more wildlife
• Put slug barrier products around the new shoots of Hostas
• Replant pots of flowered bulbs from indoors into borders
• Check that tree ties aren’t too tight and that stakes are still firmly in the ground
• Prune out any wind-damaged branches on trees and shrubs
• Check for new shoots of ground elder, fork these up & remove all roots you see
• Place bug boxes in sheltered corners, for insects to lay their eggs
• Keep putting out food for garden birds, as the breeding season gets underway
• Cut back winter-flowering Jasmine to tidy it up and encourage flowers next year

Flowerbeds & pots

• Deadhead any daffodil seedheads on daffodils leaving the leaves to die back naturally
• Finish pruning roses early in the month
• Cut Dogwoods, Willows and Cotinus right down to the base to promote vigorous new growth
• Start sowing hardy annuals outdoors, including California poppies & Nasturtiums
• Tidy up alpines as they start to flower, removing dead foliage, then mulch with grit to keep the foliage off damp soil
• Plant lilies and other summer-flowering bulbs in pots
• Feed ericaceous shrubs, such as Rhododendrons, Azaleas, Camellias and Pieris, with an ericaceous fertiliser
• Tidy up borders, removing established and newly-germinating weeds, then mulch generously with garden compost
• Plant new roses and other shrubs and climbers
• Sow native wildflower seeds in trays or modules, to produce plants for your own mini-meadow
• Scatter general-purpose fertiliser over flowerbeds and around roses, shrubs and hedges

Fruit & Vegetables

• Give blackcurrant bushes a high-nitrogen feed
• Sow tomatoes, chillies, sweet peppers and aubergines in pots indoors
• Plant onion and shallot sets, spacing them 10-15cm apart, and keep the bed free of weeds
• Avoid carrot root fly by sowing an early crop of carrots under cloches or fleece
• Make the first outdoor sowings of spinach, covering with cloches or fleece
• Plant early potatoes in trenches in the ground or in pots
• Sow parsnips as soon as the soil starts to warm up, as they’re slow to germinate and need a long growing season
• Plant a fig tree in a large container to restrict its roots, which encourages fruiting and limits its overall size
• Start hoeing veg beds as soon as the weather starts to warm up, as weeds will germinate quickly
• Plant strawberries in a hanging basket or trough to keep the fruits away from slugs

Greenhouse or Windowsill

• Open greenhouse vents on sunny days to prevent humidity building up
• Get celeriac, celery, lettuces and parsley off to a good start sowing indoors, to transplant into the garden later
• Sow a selection of vibrant annual climbers, such as Spanish flag (Ipomoea lobata) and black-eyed Susan (Thunbergia alata)
• Sow Coleus on a warm windowsill to enjoy their vibrant foliage indoors or in tropical-style displays outside
• Sow dwarf French beans in a large pot for an early indoor crop in June
• Pot up overwintering cannas into fresh compost, water in, then place in a warm spot to spur them into growth
• Sow sweet peas in deep pots and keep in a greenhouse or on a sunny windowsill
• Protect greenhouse sowings of beans, peas & sweet peas from hungry mice

The next Alpington with Yelverton Parish Council meeting will be held at 7.30pm at the village hall, Mon 3rd Mar 2025. The agenda is downloadable here.

Slade Lane in Yelverton will be closed from 18th to 19th February 2025 to facilitate drainage works.

From the official notice:

…affecting the C374 Slade Lane from its junction with the A146 Loddon Road to its junction with the U76327 Back Lane (the “Road”) in the  parish of Yelverton to facilitate Norfolk County Council drainage works, the Road will be temporarily closed (except for pedestrian access) for the duration of the works/period the closure is necessary which is anticipated to be from 18th to 19th February 2025…

Feb/Mar 2025 edition of Eleven Says, the Newspaper of the Bramerton Group of Churches covering 11 Parishes.

An organ recital titled “Inspired by Bells” by Richard Bower will be held at St. Mary’s Church, Yelverton on Saturday, 8th March at 7.30 p.m. Tickets are priced at £10

From the FRIENDS OF
ST. MARY’S CHURCH

Saturday, 8th March

‘INSPIRED BY BELLS’

An Organ Recital by Richard Bower

in St. Mary’s Church, Yelverton

at 7.30 p.m.
Tickets £10 available from Mary Fewster 01508 492059 or Brian Bugg 01508 492131

Norfolk County Council plans to temporarily close a section of Cherrywood Road in Alpington from February 4th to 6th, 2025, to facilitate Anglian Water works for a new water connection.

From the official notice:

…proposes to make a Temporary Traffic Regulation Order (the “Order”) (STRO11884) affecting the U7624/18 Cherrywood from 35m west of its junction with U76524/12 Cherrywood for 35m westwards (the “Road”) in the  Parish of Alpington to facilitate Anglian Water works for a new water connection, the Road will be temporarily closed (except for pedestrian access) for the duration of the works/period the closure is necessary which is anticipated to be from 4th to 6th February 2025,

February is the month which should signal the end of Winter, when we can all start preparing for Spring and enjoy being out in our gardens more often, as the weather permits.

Plants to buy or enjoy this month

Shrubs: Early flowering Camelias, Jasminum nudiflorum (winter flowering Jasmine), Garrya elliptica (also known as the Silk Tassel tree)

Perennials & Bulbs: Hellebores, native Primroses, Pulmonaria. Also early Daffodils, Crocuses and Aconites.

General Garden maintenance

• If snow falls, knock it off evergreen shrubs & conifers to prevent branches snapping or bowing under the weight
• Firm back down any plants that have been lifted by frost
• Put garden compost or well-rotted manure on beds and fork it in
• Clear away old plant debris from pond margins and scoop out any leaves that have fallen into the water
• Spread a layer of well-rotted manure around roses and shrubs
• Install a nest box with a camera, so you can watch birds raising their young in Spring

Flowerbeds & Pots

• Cut down deciduous ornamental grasses left standing over winter, before fresh shoots appear
• Divide large clumps of snowdrops and Winter aconites after flowering and replant to start new colonies
• Divide congested clumps of herbaceous perennials and grasses to make vigorous new plants for free
• Move dormant deciduous shrubs growing in the wrong place
• Pot up containers with hardy spring bedding, such as primroses, wallflowers and forget-me-nots
• Sprinkle slow-release fertiliser around the base of roses and other flowering shrubs

Pruning

• Prune hybrid tea and floribunda roses, before growth restarts
• Prune late-summer flowering clematis, cutting stems back to healthy buds about 30cm from the base
• Trim back ivy, Virginia creeper and other climbers if they have outgrown their space, before birds start nesting
• Prune winter-blooming shrubs such as mahonia & winter jasmine after they’ve flowered
• Cut back wisteria side shoots to three buds, to encourage abundant flowers in spring
• Give winter heathers a light trim after flowering, removing shoot tips but not cutting back into old wood
• Prune buddleia and elder down to 1m or to the base to keep these vigorous shrubs to a reasonable size
• Cut away all the old foliage from epimediums with shears, before the spring flowers start to develop
• Finish winter-pruning fruit trees and soft fruits, including apples, autumn raspberries and blackcurrants

Greenhouse

• Remove any faded or yellowing leaves from overwintering plants
• Wash greenhouse glazing inside and out to let in more light
• Sow sweet peas in deep pots and keep them frost-free in a greenhouse and pinch out Autumn-sown sweet peas to encourage side shoots
• Sow summer bedding and tender annuals, including cosmos, lobelia, dahlias, nasturtiums and snapdragons
• Sow tender crops such as tomatoes and chillies in a heated propagator
• Plant dahlia tubers in trays to encourage shoots to develop
• Start planting summer bulbs in pots indoors, including begonias, gloxinias, lilies and agapanthus
• Cut back overwintered fuchsias and start watering them sparingly to encourage new growth

Winter is an excellent time to prune trees, hedges and shrubs before the bird nesting season kicks off in Spring. 

It’s especially important to check any trees, hedges or shrubs you have that are alongside a public footpath or highway as hedges or shrubs and trees that overgrow a footpath can seriously inconvenience and even endanger pedestrians forcing them into the road or even causing injury – a poke in the face from a branch is no joke!  You should also check for and remove any low hanging branches from trees that could potentially impede or injure a passerby.  Remember you are responsible for ensuring that your plants, trees, shrubs and hedges do not encroach beyond your boundary line, especially if this affects the use of the road or path.

If you are thinking of planting new trees, shrubs or hedges then check what the eventual width will be – you may need to plant further back from the boundary than you thought.

So be a good neighbour and check your hedges, bushes, trees and shrubs in your gardens where you have a public right of way adjacent to your boundary and where necessary cut back any overgrowth as soon as possible. 

Thank you for your cooperation.

Alpington with Yelverton Parish Council

Plants to buy this month

• Snowdrops and hellebores. Buy plants in flower, so you can choose the blooms you like

General Garden maintenance

• Clear soggy leaves, algae and moss from paths, patios, decking and steps
• Top up bird baths with fresh water and feed birds high energy food to help them through the cold weeks ahead, remembering to scrub the feeders regularly
• Repair wobbly or damaged fences
• Give your lawn mower a basic service while not in use
• Put up bird boxes in sheltered spots, on tree trunks, sheds or walls
• Clean and sharpen your tools, including hoes, secateurs and shears. Spray metal tools with oil
• Sprinkle an all-purpose fertiliser along the base of hedges and around shrubs
• Trim back ivy, Virginia creeper and other climbers
• Give empty pots and seed trays a thorough wash and scrub

Flowerbeds

• Plant bare-root roses, shrub & hedging and ornamental trees, as long as the ground isn’t frozen
• Clear away and compost soggy, collapsed stems of perennials
• Remove larger leaves of established hellebores to reveal the flowers
• Press mistletoe berries into the bark of apple trees to establish your own mistletoe plants
• Clear leaf debris from small alpines
• Move dormant plants that are in the wrong place to more suitable sites
• Check for rot on stored bulbs and tubers, and ensure dahlia and canna tubers haven’t totally dried out

Pruning

• Continue pruning climbing roses, while they are dormant
• Prune apple and Pear trees

Greenhouse

• Sow winter salads in a greenhouse or on a sunny windowsill, for harvesting in a few weeks
• Tidy up the greenhouse, disposing of any broken pots & old compost etc
• Move potted strawberry plants under cover to encourage early fruiting
• Prepare your greenhouse for spring – look at ventilation, shading & heating
• Ventilate the greenhouse on sunny days to prevent humidity building up

TWELFTH NIGHT QUIZ

To raise funds for the Village Hall

At Alpington Village Hall

on Saturday, 11^th January, 2025

at 7.00 p.m. for 7.30 p.m.

BYO Drinks and Nibbles

Mulled Wine and Mince Pies provided

Tables of up to 6 people

£7 per person

Please contact Pat Barter on 01508 493570

to book a table or individual seats

Full details on the flyer below!