Published: 3 April 2026 - Watch on YouTube
Hello everyone, and welcome back to the garden here in Chichester, West Sussex. My plan for today was simple: pot up the new dahlia tubers I bought at the start of the season, then check over the old ones from last year. The morning started sunny but cold, and the sky could not make up its mind, so this turned into a proper day of sun, rain and everything in between.
I really wanted to do all of this outside because it was semi sunny to begin with, but as soon as I started pottering about it began spitting with rain. There were some very dark clouds drifting around despite the blue sky patches, so to be on the safe side I decided to set up in the shed instead. There is enough space in here, and it meant I would not have to panic and pack everything away halfway through the job if the heavens opened again.
That turned out to be a very good decision. It did start raining again not long after, and by the end of the day the sky was completely grey. I even filled the watering can before taking anything outside so it would not blow away, because you never know here. This is all very standard English spring weather to us, and I was so glad I had not started this outside.
I had four varieties of gladioli with some bulbs left over. These were meant to go straight into the allotment, but the soil there is heavy clay and it has been a real problem. All through the winter, with the rain we have had, it was so boggy and muddy you could practically lose your boots in it, and I did not want to plant anything directly in case the bulbs rotted.
Then we had about a week of dry, sunny weather around the equinox, and now the clay has swung the other way and gone rock hard. It is just not easy to work at the moment. So rather than fight it, I potted the gladioli up in modules to give them a head start. Once they have released some roots and a little compost is holding around them, I can dig a hole and pop them straight in.
You might notice both of my garden arches lying flat on the ground. We had such a heavy storm earlier this week that by the next morning they had simply toppled over. I have been lucky, though: they missed the greenhouse. It is already broken as it is, so at least the storm did not shatter it any further, and I have just left the arches down until I am ready to set them back up properly.
For the dahlias I used the same compost I used for my tomatoes, mixed with perlite for drainage, though I did not bother sieving it this time as the bulbs and tubers can handle a few larger bits. When you have a whole crown with more than one tuber, you want to let the neck of the crown stick out slightly rather than burying the lot, and it helps to give it a gentle shake so the compost works its way into the gaps between the tubers.
The new varieties going in were Dark Spirit, Polka, Totally Tangerine, Sylvia, Golden Sceptre, Salmon Romana and White Mustard. A couple of tubers had been cut very low at the neck, and a few came away loose because they were barely hanging on. I could not see any eyes on those, but I popped them in anyway, just in case an eye decides to appear. Once done, they went out for a quick water and then into the greenhouse.
The nights are still very cold and the air has a real chill to it, but I think the dahlias will be fine in the greenhouse. One of the dahlias I left in the flower border has already pushed out new shoots, and on my walk round today I spotted another one doing the same, so they can clearly cope with a bit of cold at this point.
What worries me far more is the slugs. That is the real battle in this country. When it rains a lot and the weather keeps swinging from cold to warm without ever really settling, the slugs are out on the hunt and they will eat anything that dares to poke out of the ground. Sure enough, I found traces of them all over one pot, and when I looked closer there were plenty of them living in there. How rude.
I have two trays of broad beans on the go, sown into the cardboard packaging that comes with online wine deliveries. It is great for reusing, and the idea is I can cut the tops off and plant them straight in, but the downside is the cardboard starts to fall apart once it gets wet. I should really have stood them on separate trays from the start. I also ended up with far too many plants, because I sowed some new seed and, being someone who hates throwing anything away, sowed my three year old out of date seed too. Both germinated, so if anyone fancies some free broad beans, do let me know.
The achillea was less cheerful. I bought a few bare root plants, six in a packet that was meant to hold four, and only two of them seem to be alive. The water had been sitting in the pot and drowned them, so I tipped the compost out to help it dry, and reminded myself not to water them so much, as achillea is fairly drought tolerant. The trouble is my greenhouse is not fully waterproof; the top window is broken and taped up with cellophane, so rainwater still finds its way in. My poor forgotten alliums, which never made it to the allotment, were sitting far too wet as well, though at least one had put out some nice roots.
It was one of those changeable days that spring in West Sussex does so well, but getting the dahlias and gladioli tucked up in the greenhouse felt like a proper step forward. There is something rather cosy about pottering in the shed while the rain rattles down outside. If you are also drowning in surplus broad bean seedlings, or losing the slug battle in your own garden, I would love to hear about it in the comments. Thank you for spending the day with me, and I will see you in the next one.
Tags: #SpringGardening #DahliaTubers #GreenhouseGardening #BroadBeans #WestSussexGarden #MyWindyGarden