Courtesy of the RHS, here are a few things that we should be getting on with this month. There is always something to be done in the garden!
Fruit
- Keep checking stored fruits and remove rotten ones.
- Ensure tree stakes and ties are firm and sound.
- Harvest citrus fruits once mature.
- Lower indoor grapevine stems for even bud-break.
- Apply winter washes to fruit trees and bushes.
- Prune apple and pear trees
- Apply a top dressing of sulphate of potash to all fruits and nuts.
Vegetables
- Stake or earth up Brussels sprouts stalks that look leggy and vulnerable to wind rock. Pick the biggest sprouts from low down the stalks first.
- Force chicory to produce plump leafy heads.
- Cultivate and prepare seed beds covering them with clear polythene, cloches or fleece to warm up the soil before sowing.
- If the weather is reliably dry and frosty, leave heavy soils exposed – the frosts will kill pests and improve soil structure by the continual freezing and thawing of soil water.
- Improve drainage of heavy soils by working in lots of organic matter. Grit will only be effective when used in conjunction with organic matter.
- When gardening on wet soils work from a plank of wood, rather than treading on the bed, to avoid compacting the soil.
- Save egg boxes as they will come in handy for potato chitting next month. Source your seed potatoes if you have not already done so.
- Plan a rotation system for vegetable plots to ensure the same crops are not grown in the same beds year after year to help prevent disease build-up.
Flowers and Shrubs
- Recycle your Christmas tree by shredding it for mulch
- Clean posts and greenhouses ready for spring
- Inspect stored tubers of Dahlia, Begonia and Canna for rots or drying out
- Dig over vacant plots that have not been dug already