Winter gardening can be as fun to do as in the summer. But remember you will need to wear a bit more than a T-shirt and Ray-Bans. Although last week we were almost literally in T-Shirts and sunglasses (I can’t afford Ray-Bans). So what do you do?
Well perhaps the biggest job is to get the leaves off the lawn and beds. Leaf drop has lasted longer this year, so even last week we collected nearly 3 Jumbo bags of leaves in a garden. Most of this went into compost bins which will provide leaf mulch for the flower beds once it has all rotted down. Those of you with Oak trees in your garden may have noticed an extraordinary amount of acorns on the ground this year. On one estate we work on, we picked up 80 to 90kgs of them. This is also happening in Northern America as I learnt on other blogs.
It’s also worth tackling weeds in the winter, so that weeding is not such a chore in the spring. Take out those annuals and biennials that have completed flowering, they don’t look nice and they attract slugs, snails and unwanted diseases if left alone. Dig them out!!
Tidy up around your perennials, clear out old withered leaves and carefully loosen the soil surrounding them. This breaks up tough compacted soil and affords better drainage and allows air in to work its way to the roots.
What about plants for the winter? There are plenty, try these: Anemone, Pansies Cyclamen, Hellebore, Viloas, Narcissus.
In the shrub department try : Cornus, Chosya, Euonymus,Garrya, Eleagnus.
All the above will add interest and colour to a ‘sleeping garden’.
You might say – How can you garden if it’s snowing, wet or freezing? Well you can; from the comfort of your favourite chair with a nice cup of coffee (or whatever takes your fancy). You got it! Make plans for the garden – It will be spring before you can say ‘otorhinolaryngologist’ (spring is a few months way :-).
Enjoy!
This Blog was provided by Mac Patel from Tilia Services.
