Hedgehogs find shelter and food in dead leaves

Delay your big garden tidy-up: Nature needs the mess 

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Nature is still sleeping, so the best thing you can do is sit back and relax. Delay your spring garden clean-up until temperatures are consistently above 10°C for at least a week—often late April or when apple trees bloom. Top tips for an untidy garden and its benefits:

  • Wait and Observe: Let the garden “sleep in” to support local ecology. 
  • Protect Pollinators: Many butterflies, bees, and beneficial insects overwinter in dead, hollowed-out plant stems and fallen leaves. 
  • Delay Lawn Care: Avoid mowing, walking on the lawn or wet spring soil to prevent damaging its structure. Soil compaction restricts air and water movement, leading to poor drainage, waterlogging, and limited root growth. It is better to wait until the soil is dry enough to not form a ball in your hand.  
  • Protect Aquatic Life: If you have a pond, early cleaning can destroy dragonfly nymphs that live in the debris. 
  • Avoid Damaging New Growth: Early tidying often involves stepping on or breaking new shoots that are already emerging.  
  • Selective Clean-up: If you must tidy, only remove dead foliage that is diseased. 
  • Leave Stems: If you cut back perennials, leave the hollow stems in a pile in a corner of the garden, as insects may still be inside. 

Our expert gardener Geoff can help you schedule your gardening tasks and give you ideas of what to grow in your healthy soil. You can find him at the Growing Hub as part of the Sussex Green Hub on the last Saturday of every month. The next one is Saturday 28th February, from 10am to 2.30pm, at the United Reformed Church Hall, Springfield Road, Horsham, RH12 2RG (past the Lynd Cross pub) in the town centre. 

This month, Transition Horsham will hold their annual seed exchange event, so you are sure to find something exciting to grow!