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After the festivities, the cold quiet month of January is quite the seasonal change. If you are making new year resolutions, don’t forget to add plenty of gardening time onto the list and more plants. There’s always room for more plants! If January feels long for you, there’s no better therapy than getting outside into the garden when you can. Preparations can be made for spring, tidying and general maintenance is all important even at this time of year and since it’s the month of new starts and renewal, why not get work on planning your garden for the year ahead.
Using a good homemade compost is one of the best and cheapest ways to replenish your soil. If you haven’t already got a compost bin, why not spend the quieter months building or installing one? Pallets can easily be made into bins, or situate a dalek bin somewhere safe to start composting kitchen and garden waste. Make sure the ground is flat and even, layer some chicken wire at the bottom to help keep rats out and start composting. Try to mix brown waste (cardboard, twigs, wood chip, shredded newspaper) and green (plants, grass clippings, weeds, vegetable and fruit scraps, tea bags) evenly and turn regularly with a garden fork or shovel. Green waste is rich in nitrogen and brown is full of carbon so it is important to get a good mixture which will create a rich loamy consistency in a few months to a year (or sometimes longer depending on your mix and situation). Keep the compost pile moist but not soggy and watch how it transform into the perfect garden compost.
It might not seem like a month where weeding is necessary but preparing the soil means weeding can happen all year, especially if winter has been mild. I always refer to weeding as simply removing plants I don’t want growing where they are, because there are so many that are incredibly important plants. Dandelion for example is not only edible and medicinal but the flowers are an essential early nectar source for pollinators, the same with Red Dead Nettle. So if you are hoeing your cultivated beds, please do leave some ‘weeds’ behind. Not only will some flower but they also do serve as shelter for insects over winter. I have an area on my allotment where I simply let ‘weeds’ grow. It’s the most wonderful area, full of ladybirds, caterpillars, bees and moths.
Deciduous trees may be bare but winter is an important time to care for trees, hedges, and shrubs in your garden. If the ground isn’t frozen or waterlogged, bare-root trees and shrubs can still be planted throughout January. Planting them now will give them a decent head start for the spring growing season. You might even be able to grab a bargain at this time of year! Check out the bare-root plants on the website and treat yourself to some lovely native trees and shrubs or go for something flowery and fruity.
Many hedges, trees and shrubs do benefit from winter pruning, especially deciduous hedges which can be pruned back to encourage new, strong growth in time for spring. See previous months for more pruning advice and check the species information on website, along with the knowledge base for more information. Now is a good time of year to prune Honeysuckle and if needed, this can be pruned back hard ready for new spring growth.
Being able to take a close look at your trees, hedging and shrubs at this time of year can be really useful. Put your winter coat on and have a wander around your garden, observing any changes that might need some attention. Look out for signs of damage or disease, dead branches or yellowing foliage. Spotting signs early on will mean you should be able to stop the spread of anything unwanted before it gets out of control.
Newley planted and young trees and shrubs can benefit from added protection in prolonged cold spells. Horticultural fleece can be wrapped around them but more importantly, mulching around the base will give protection, retain moisture and help to regulate the temperature. Don’t forget trees do need water, especially ones which have only recently been planted. In dry conditions, low moisture and high winds can damage roots and leave the tree falling over. Don’t overwater, but do make sure the soil is moist, which is another reason why mulching is very useful. If you do notice any new trees or shrubs have been lifted or loosened in the wind or frosts, make sure you firm the soil back down around them for stability. Make sure stakes and ties are in place as needed.
January and February are the generally the snowiest months in the UK, and a blanket of snow in the garden really is a wonderful sight to wake up to! Snowman making, sledging – all such fun! Heavy snowfall however can break tree branches so when you are out in the garden having some winter fun, gently brush off any heavy snow from trees such as Leylandii, Yew, Thuja and long branching plants such as Forsythia.
Deciduous trees and shrubs get all the love at this time of year but Evergreens really do shine through when there is little else flowering. Some of my favourites for all year round greenery include Pittosporum and Laurel so if you are desperate to see something green in your garden throughout winter, try these which can be planted even now, if you go for potted or instant plants.
There won’t be much lawn care needed at this time of year but if you do notice compacted soil, aerate it with a garden fork on a clear day. If you see lots of worm mounds, gently brush them over the soil which will help replenish it and make it less muddy. Try not to step on the lawn too much, especially when it’s wet to avoid it getting muddy and damaging the lawn. Lawns are resilient though, so this only really refers to heavy footfall… preferably no football!
There is no better pest control than having a biodiverse garden. Encouraging birds into the garden all year around will help, including during winter. Aphids can still be present, looking for a feed on your winter salads, brassicas and beans. Feeding birds with high energy fat balls and seeds hanging in amongst hedges and tress will really help. They will soon spot aphids for their next meal as well.
These aphids are common on Apple trees, Pyracantha and Cotoneaster but don’t panic. The white fluff will be around cracks in the bark or where branches join the main stem or trunk and by having a biodiverse garden, natural predators may well control the outbreak. Woolly aphids are eaten by Ladybirds, Lacewings, Hoverfly Larvae and the parasitoid wasp Aphelinus mali (which is more often found in gardens where no pesticides are used). Even Earwigs will munch on aphids. If you do need to remove Woolly aphids, use a stiff brush and scrub them away. I tend to leave any aphid communities as they are part of the ecosystem and will more often than not be controlled naturally anyway.
My Leeks were attacked from all sides last year. There are a few allium diseases and pests including the Leek moth, leaf miner and rust. If you do notice your Leeks have been shredded, remove the Leeks which may be inedible and dig over the soil. Your garden birds will thank you for the extra feed from pests in the soil.
At this time of year, you may find yellowing leaves and white fly on your brassicas. Remove old, yellowing foliage for the compost heap and let the brassicas be accessible to birds and other natural predators.
Many herbs in the garden will continue to provide interest over winter such as Sage, Bay and Rosemary. They can even be lightly harvested on a dry day for use in the kitchen. Other lower growing herbs such as Thyme, can rot away if fallen leaves cover the plants, so do brush them off if needed. If you would like some herbs to lift your home, growing some on a bright, sunny windowsill is a great idea. If you have tender herbs undercover over winter such as Lemon verbena, keep a check on them so you can provide extra protection if needed and look out for pests and diseases.
You may notice that some bulbs rise up to the surface in very wet or after frosty weather. This is usually because they haven’t been planted deep enough or because Squirrels and Mice have dug them up for a winter treat! Any intact bulbs can be planted back at the correct depth and any nibbled can be composted. Gravel, chicken wire and cleaning up behind bulb planting can help to keep them from digging up more.
Thinking ahead to spring will keep your spirits high during the colder, wet weather and some of the brighter blooms for springtime are Azaleas and Rhododendrons. If you have acidic soil all the better but if not, they can be planted in containers of ericaceous compost and be ready to burst into flower in about May time.
Some seeds can be sown in January, so if you simply cannot wait to get some seeds started, there are a few which can be grown on a warm windowsill or in a propagator.
Perhaps there is no better month than January to sit down and plan the gardening year ahead. Scroll through photographs for reference, make notes about what went well over the past year, what you would like to grow again, how you might do things differently and really think about what you want from your garden. You can even budget and plan what you might want to purchase for your garden and when, such as bare-root plants now through to late winter, summer flowering bulbs in spring, potted perennials in spring and summer through to bulbs in autumn. Planning can definitely help you to create a thriving garden and with a cuppa and your feet up on a rainy day, it’s quite the tonic!
If you’d prefer to look at a birds eye view of what you would like your garden to look like, put pencil to paper and draw it out. Sit by the window and sketch out your garden design while visualising it in full bloom at the time of year when the garden looks less lively. This can feed nicely into your written plan to get started on.
If there is something you would specifically like to pursue or learn about in the garden, why not take the opportunity before the busy spring months, to join a course or workshop? From online learning to meeting a local community group or gardening society, there is a wealth of knowledge out there, so why not learn something new to implement in your garden.
Keep on feeding the birds! This is the toughest and coldest time of year for them, so supplementary feeding is important. Consider planting trees, hedging and shrubs that have edible berries for birds in autumn and winter for a natural food supply and shelter as well. Bird friendly mixed native plants are ideal and can be planted out now for a feast next year and one of my absolute favourites is the Arbutus unedo (strawberry tree) which is a real treat for birds, plus ideal for a smaller garden.
Growing fruit is never a waste of space because harvesting your own tray of Raspberries for home-made Jam or Blueberries for your breakfast bowl, is both delicious and satisfying. Raspberry canes can be planted out now in a sunny, well drained site. Blueberries can be planted into acidic soil or a container of ericaceous compost.
Bare-root fruit trees can be planted now through to late winter the same as all planting at this time of year – as long as the ground isn’t waterlogged or frozen.
So there’s plenty to be doing outside, even at this time of year.
Happy new year!
