by Christine Fowler | Dec 1, 2022 | Uncategorized
Gardening jobs for December
Propagate fruit bushes – Take hardwood cuttings of currants, gooseberries, figs and mulberries.Put them somewhere they can stay for a year undisturbed.
Make use of leaves – Allow leaves to stay on borders to act as a mulch to protect the soil from weathering.
Net brassicas to stop pigeons destroying your crop. Use upturned flower pots to prevent the supports from piercing the netting.
Prune deciduous shrubs such as berberis, flowering currants, wiegelia,philadelphus and deutzia. Thin them out by removing a few branches at ground level.
Get some festive colour in the garden using evergreen plants with variegated foliage or berries, such as aucuba, euonymus, skimmia or holly.
Plan your crops – go through your seed packets and catalogues, then start planning next year’s crops and flowers. NB old seeds have low viability so check the date on the packet and buy new if necessary.
Trim apples and pears – cut out dead , diseased and damaged wood. Opening up the branch structure will make it easier to pick next year’s crop.
Start forcing rhubarb, either in the greenhouse or outdoors. Use a terracotta forcing pot or upturned dustbin.
Boost your veg flavour – leave your parsnips in the ground until needed, or lift and then bury them in a shalow trench until needed. They taste sweeter after a frost.
Grow your own pollution barrier. Plant a hedge of pollution filtering evergreens such as Cotoneaster franchetti, yew or Thuga plicata if you live on a busy road.
by Christine Fowler | Nov 2, 2022 | Uncategorized
Help bees, prune vines and sow winter crops
- Remove any pot saucers for outside containers and replace with feet or bricks to elevate them off the ground and to stop the pots becoming waterlogged.
- Climate change means that some bee species are increasing active during the winter, Help them out by growing winter flowering plants such as Heathers, Hellebores and Mahonia, Crocus are also great sources of nectar.
- Replace broken stakes and loosen ties on trees and climbers to prevent damaging the bark as the plant grows.
- Protect tender perennials from frost by putting straw or bark chippings under them, such as Penstemon and Salvias.
- Plenty of vegetables are ready to harvest now, such as leeks, turnips, cabbage, cauliflower, kale etc.
- Help prevent the development of mould and brassica downy mildew by removing yellowing leaves. Clear up debris lying around plants too.
- Use grease bands and tree barrier glues to prevent winter moths climbing fruit trees to lay their eggs. Only use products that are sold specifically for this purpose to prevent entangling larger animals.
- Rake up fallen leaves for the compost heap or to store in punctured bin bags with some moisture to create leaf mould.
- Plant out spring bedding such as forget me nots and wallflowers.
- If you dried your borlotti beans make a warming minestrone to remind you of summer days.
- If you have a dead tree, consider leaving it standing as long as it poses no risk from falling to provide an excellent wildlife habitat.
- Grapevines shuld be pruned at the end of this month, or in December, removing the side shoots back to two buds.
- Remove any large figs on your tree, leaving smaller pea sized ones for ropping next year.
- Plant out your own well rooted strawberry runners during mild periods.
- Always check the bonfire before lighting to check that nothing has crawled in there for helter.
- Hardneck, softneck and elephant garlic can all be planted now.
by Christine Fowler | Feb 1, 2022 | Uncategorized
– Take root cuttings
– Cut back perennials
– Prune late summer clematis
– Clean your tools
_ Prune autumn raspberries
– Sow peppers and chillies
– Mulch perennial veg
– Prune deciduous hedges
– Tidy citrus plants
– Trim winter heathers
by Christine Fowler | Jan 8, 2022 | Uncategorized
– Plant bare root trees, shrubs and fruit if you can still get them, but do not plant when the ground is waterlogged or frozen.
– Herbaceous perennials need a mulch of at least 15cm to protect them against frost, top it up if any has been washed away.
– Prune apple and pear trees, remove dead diseased or damaged branches, then shorten the the previous year’s growth by a third. cut away shoots in the centre to create an open shape
Avoid compacting your soil by standing on a plank if you are pruning or weeding.
– Deadhead pot displays to keep them flowering for longer.
by Christine Fowler | Dec 2, 2021 | Uncategorized
Choose the right spot for your festive house plants
- Indoor azaleas, cyclamen and forced bulbs last longer in a cool spot, while poinsettias like warm draught free rooms.
Water evergreens in containers
- Winter winds can draw a lot of moisture out of plants so make sure there is some water available to them.
Prune blackcurrants
- These fruit best on newer wood, so cut out a quarter to a third of the oldest, woodiest stems and any weak or damaged ones.
Keep an eye out for hibernating creatures
- If you are tidying up keep an eye out for hibernating frogs, toads and ladybirds and be careful not to disturb them.
Grow microgreens
- Sow mustard, cress, coriander or pea shoots in pots on a warm windowsill to use in winter salads.
Apply a winter wash to fruit trees
- This coats overwintering insect eggs in plant oils. Only use where aphids,scale insects and mites caused damage last summer.
Keep your Christmas tree watered
- If you have bought a poted tree keep it outdoors for as long as possible. Water it frequently once you bring it indoors.
Tidy up around brassicas.
- Remove yellowing foliage around winter crops such as Brussel sprouts and kale and keep the area free of weeds. Taller plants may need staking to prevent wind damage.
Take hardwood cuttings
- Use this season’s growth to propagate pencil thin cuttings about 15 to 30cm long. Good candidates are Cornus, Salix, Forsythia, Buddleja, jasmine, honeysuckle and grapevines.
Prune apples and pears
- To maintain a good shape and to maximise cropping next year prune freestanding trees now. Cut out diseased twigs and remove cankers where possible.
Improve heavy clay soils
- Unless the soil is waterlogged add well rotted
by Christine Fowler | Nov 1, 2021 | Uncategorized
- Protect tree trunks with rabbit guard or chicken wire to stop rabbits nibbling the bark.
- Lay new turf as long as the ground is not waterlogged or frozen
- Clean pots and trays with warm soapy water to stop infection carrying over.
- Net brassicas such as kale and brussel sprouts to prevent pigeon damage
- Sow early broad beans such as Aquadulce
- Bring citrus indoors to a cool well lit room, reduce watering and feed with a winter citrus feed.
- Protect tender perennials in a frost free greenhouse or similar.
- Plant shrubs with berries to provide winter sustenance for birds.
- Clean out bird boxes.
- Check tree supports to see that they are secure and that the ties are not biting into the bark.
- Leave ivy untrimmed so that it produces berries for bird,
- Sow nuts such as cobnuts, acorns and horse chestnuts as they need a cold period of two to three months to germinate.
