Gardening Dec 13
I’ll try something new
“As on the Whirligig of Time, we circle with the seasons” - so wrote Alfred Lord Tennyson. As the year turns full circle and the earth’s tilt on its axis reaches its zenith, ‘tis time to reflect on what has passed in the garden over the last twelve months - the successes and the failures, the little victories and the downright disasters.
The long cold spring and the gales around the equinox made for a late start for all of us. The ground lay cold and wet and any early direct sowings just rotted where they lay.
Things did pick up as spring turned to summer with long days of fine weather allowing long spells of growth, which we now are pruning back. One bonus: this year’s weather pattern has produced one of the best autumn leaf displays seen in a long time. So all’s well that ends well….
Armchair gardening
There are lots of things you can do in the garden at this time of year, but the real question is, do you want to? What is there to stir up the desire and draw you outside into the garden?
I was recently asked what I did in the winter as the weather is far too cold and wet for working outside. My reply was that first and foremost I look out of the window, apraise the sky, boil the kettle and light the wood burner and settle down with a good book.
Yes, there will be a few crisp, bright, winter days on which it will be a pleasure to be outside, but there will be many more bleak days on which the lure of a hot cup of tea by the fire proves overwhelming.
If the weather is bad the soil will be wet and you will do more damage by being out in your garden than you would by keeping off it. Your excuses in place, pull those seed cataloges and gardening books off the shelf and start dreaming of warmer weather and a more beautiful garden next year.
Order vegetable seeds
Enjoy planning and scheming for the glorious bounty of the following year. Skip the usual suspects and this winter try a few of the connoisseurs’ catalogues. Plants Of Distinction sell unusual and heirloom varieties, Simpson’s Seeds is the place to go for tomatoes, aubergines etc.
MoreVeg have a long list of unusual vegetables and flowers and they also follow up orders with a monthly news letter via e-mail. You can while away an hour or two in the company of the Chiltern Seeds catalogue whose seed list will tempt anyone.
It is easy to order vast amounts of seeds that will weigh around your neck all spring, so try to keep the size of your vegetable garden and your vegetable needs in mind when you order. Do you really need three types of rocket and eight varities of potato?
General care
• Plant shallots and garlic in mild areas with well-drained soil.
• Parsnips taste better when frosted. Make sure to mark the trench, and cover it with a protective layer of cardboard if hard frosts are forecast.
• If you have not done so already, now is the time to dig over the beds and incorporate soil improvers into vacant areas of the vegetable plot. Or if you practice the no-dig method top up mulch levels.
• Clear and dispose of late-season debris from the vegetable plots.
• Clean and store bamboo canes in the shed or other dry place to ensure they’re still in good condition for next year. Broken or rotted ones can be shortened, where possible, for re-use.
Fruit Trees
• Thin out congested spurs of restricted fruit trees.
• Prune apples, pears, quinces and medlars.
Soft Fruit
• Prune autumn raspberries.
• Prune red and white currants and gooseberries.
First published December 2013 By The Dart
