Gardening tips for March: Cut grasses

Now that regrowth has started, it’s a great time to cut back ornamental grasses

8vAuUcTYXP5A5HHVameTKH.jpg
Cutting the grass
(Image credit: Willie B. Thomas)

Buy this year's young plants at the Country Life Nursery (link to

www.countrylife.co.uk/nursery) for top quality plants and flowers

delivered straight to your door

Ornamental grasses are everywhere and have their own particular requirements. Many do best if allowed to stand untrimmed through the winter, not least because the older growth gives some shelter to the delicate greenery beneath, remembering that grasses make new growth from the base, not the top.

Now that regrowth has started, it's time to cut away the dead tissue. The choice of tool depends on the grass: shears or sickle tend to be the handiest, wielded with discretion. And be neat: as ye reap, so shall it remain. Shred the waste before adding it to the compost heap.

* Subscribe to Country Life and save; Subscribe on Ipad

* Follow Country Life magazine on Twitter

Bringing the quintessential English rural idle to life via interiors, food and drink, property and more Country Life’s travel content offers a window into the stunning scenery, imposing stately homes and quaint villages which make the UK’s countryside some of the most visited in the world.