July - soaking it all up

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March: warming up

Is it really happening? Is spring really knocking on our door?

Everything always look a bit of a disaster area in the garden at this time of year. The only things that seem to be stealing a march on everything else are glowering green weeds making their claim on the border. All, however is not lost.

If you need courage, inspiration and motivation then seek out, sniff out and look out for the spring stars. They are of course the unmissable Daffodils, Crocus and varieties of Cyclamen and small Anenome. More strikingly many Hellebores are coming into their own and on a larger scale the Daphne family are giving off a striking scent. Spring flowering cherries are beginning to flower and on acid soils Fothergilla is coming out.

I realise that for many, these plants are probably just unpronounceable names in an already over-complicated world.

A great way to introduce yourself to them is to go around a garden with an established collection and, importantly, a garden where the plants have labels with the full Latin names. I can't think of a better place than the Sir Harold Hillier Gardens in Braishfield in Romsey where play areas for children have recently been upgraded. You also get a cracking tea there!

Importantly the soil at the Hillier gardens is neutral to slightly acid. This means you will discover and enjoy range of plants you would never find on chalky soil. Many National Trust properties and estates tick all those boxes too.

So, if you are like me and find excuses to do anything but the garden chores, you may be encourged to know that there are some quite simple and satisfying tasks to do this month:

• Get stuck into those Hybrid Tea and Floribunda roses by pruning them back a third to just above a bud. If you didn't get to do the Autumn prune of a third then you will need to take them back two-thirds. This is to encourage new, healthy growth and to tidy them up. By the way - most of your garden roses will be Hybrid Tea and Floribunda roses.
• Prune those strikingly colourful Cornus (Dogwood) stems unless you have the 'Sibirica' cultivar, which is best done every 3 years.
• Cut back the tender perennials that missed the autumn cut back in order that they got the winter protection they needed. Perovskia and Penstemmon fall into this category.
• Get a head start on the weeds by hoeing out what is there ( mind out for the emerging Forget-me-nots) and spreading mulch onto the borders. You need to lay down a decent depth of mulch to about 2"-3" in order for it to be last through the summer and for it to be effective. 
• Divide clumps of perennials that have become too dense. You will doing them a favour as the more overcrowded they are, the less healthy they are. As a rule of thumb, look to do this every 4 years or so.
• Plant out your pond plants either directly into the marsh areas or into baskets with enough gaps to allow the water through. Ensure they are planted deep enough so they are still submerged when the pond levels drop in the summer.
• The birds are beginning to nest. Wool, pet hair or even your own Goldilocks will all help and encourage them.

The garden will soon be coming to life and be a stage for all sorts of hidden dramas and less-than-hidden ones too. To be honest I prefer these dramas to the Hollywood ones. 

Less chance of getting causing a stir among all those delicate flowers when you get the names wrong.

February : pond life

I have had a lot to do with ponds in the past 12 months.

Natural ones, fancy ones, clever ones and smart ones. I wouldn't say it has been a dreamy love affair but probably more like your average project; great enthusiasm followed by the reality of it all. The hard work is, well, hard work. Moments of exhilaration are matched by bewilderment and a touch of pure hatred at times.

All this is worth it of course when it comes good. There is tremendous satisfaction when the waterfall falls where it should, when the fish re-appear and the wildlife begin to find a new home. So if you haven't guessed by now - making ponds is not for the feint hearted!

If you were thinking of embarking on a water project this year there are a few things to bear in mind:

• The rewards from having even a small amount of water is that a host of wildlife will usually appear including dragon-flies, frogs, newts, bird life coming for a drink and even hedgehogs having a sip or two.
• It doesn't matter how big or small the pond is - unless you have sloped sides running into the water the little critters can't get in or out. You may even drown a hedgehog.
• The soil you use to create 'bog' or 'marsh' areas should be very low in nutrients because nitrogen (that is typically found in fertilizer) will feed the algae and weeds. 
• Any static water in the natural world will incline towards become marsh and ultimately scrub woodland. To cut across that evolution you need to intervene in some way. This might mean having a pump to circulate the water but will certainly mean clearing out leaves and debris every now and again to prevent silt accumulating.
• Avoid situating a pond in shade or near heavy leaf fall.
• Even a tiny pond will attract wildlife but the bigger the pond, the more stable the core temperature will be and so it will be less likely to warm up to conditions that encourage algae.

If I haven't completely put you off then do consider a pond project but please bear in mind safety considerations especially with toddlers and baby hedgehogs!

As far as garden maintenance goes for this month there are some not-too demanding tasks to be done at this time of year. This is just as well as I defy anyone to be enthusiastic about gardening on a rainy February afternoon. Undertaking the following will however bring benefits later in the year:

- Spread mulch around the base of trees and shrubs. This will help them retain moisture, keep out the weeds and retain nutrients. Avoid using freshly chipped bark as this can actually suck out the moisture and nutrients. Anything well-rotted is good!

- Flooding can be a problem at this time of year. If you need to walk on your lawn or borders then planks can be helpful. Spiking the lawn with a fork will help reduce the surface water. If it is really bad you can create tiny channels with a spade but make sure these channels lead somewhere that isn't going to create further problems. These channels will quickly close up in spring.

- If the weather and your enthusiasm picks up there are many ways to create a spring flowering container. Primula, anenome blanda, violas, winter pansies and hellebores will all provide colour, texture and cheer.

If you are really fed up then go to a park or find in your garden to smell one of the sarcoccocca family, a daphne bholua, a witch hazel or a winter flowering viburnum. 

Boy - does a nose full of one of these make a difference to a day!

                                              Witch hazel ( Hamamelis )

January : cold comforts

There is something very comforting, honest and straightforward about going down to the allotment after Christmas and pouring the veg waste onto the compost heap.

All those lists, names to remember and places to be in December, seem something to be done when you have lots of energy but not when you are on your knees running up to the 25th. I take my hat off to those saints doing all the hard work in kitchens across the country.

The start of longer days, the breaking through of the sunshine and the sticky, wet feel of soil bring a new sense of reality after all the festivities. Washing the soil off the leeks with ice-cold water from the water butt and watching the earthworms wriggling for cover to avoid the ever-present Robin helps take me out of my holiday fug.

Even when I get home I get a boost; the odour of freshly lifted leeks fill my kitchen. I can now just about face doing some more cooking and eating again.

Now is also the perfect time for several winter jobs:

• Prune Wisterias to create the framework that you want. Further pruning in July and August will be needed to reduce the density of the plant. Whilst the plant is dormant at this time of year you can cut back stems to the buds to take out crossed branches, branches that are going AWOL and branches that are too densely packed.
• Because trees are largely dormant too you can often do unto them what you couldn't normally do at other times; plant, move and prune. Leave the Magnolia, Cherry trees, Plums and Almonds but it is pretty much open season on everything else.
• Prune your apple trees but by no more than 20% in one winter. To quote the RHS: "The more you prune, the more foliage grows at the expense of fruit".
• Use planks to walk on when working on damp borders in order to avoid compressing the soil - literally, squeezing the life out of it.
• 'Native bare-root whips' is not an expression left over from our colonial days. It is a horticultural term used to describe small trees and shrubs sometimes just 45 cms tall with bare roots that are ready to plant out to create native hedges often seen around farm and parkland. Blackthorn, Dogwoods, Field Maple, Hazel, Willow and even Oak are often used in the mix. Being incredibly low-cost (under £1 a whip) they are very economical to plant out even with the need for plastic spirals as rabbit guards and a cane to keep them erect. There will be losses through the year but even so they will still form a robust, wildlife-friendly hedge that can be happily hacked back at virtually any time of year. (Avoid spring and summer when the birds are nesting and hatching). You could even try this in your garden. Now is the best time to buy and plant them; just make sure that the roots do not dry out by exposing them to wind and sunlight.

So now it's off to the kitchen to add the leeks to the chicken soup. They smell absolutely delicious which is not surprising as they belong to the onion family. As Cyril from the allotment informed me, you can always wrap them in newspaper and keep them somewhere cool and they will keep for days.

I won't tell you what he said about having to trail around the countryside just to keep his relatives happy and waiting for hours to find a seat at mealtimes. All I can say was that, in keeping with the allotments, it was, er, very rural, colourful vocabulary. 

December : deep freeze food

                       

One of the joys of having frosty, sunny days in December is seeing the tall grasses and seed heads back-lit by the sun. The illuminated cobwebs have extraordinary patterns. 

Whilst some grasses have become greatly over and badly used there are a huge variety to choose from. Some will come from dry, exposed steppes whilst others originate from damp, temperate climates. Naturally the steppe plants tend to be more drought tolerant and shorter and the damp tolerant ones are thicker stemmed and often taller. There is however something for every garden and every soil type. Understanding their natural habitat is the key to success.

Pruning them at the correct time of year makes a huge difference. The label or a good gardening book should tell you all you need to know. Don't do what I did last year and prune a short evergreen grass too early in the year. It took nine months to recover and still isn't quite right!

It is common gardening practice to cut back all herbaceous plants in autumn, but plants such as Sedum, Dipsacus (teasels) and Verbascum that have exposed seed heads are good news for wildlife. Shrubs such as Phlomis, Spirea and Berberis are some of the many bird convenience stores. The berries of course are irresistible to birds and at this time of year it is a question of who gets their first in suburbia; the birds or the Christmas wreath makers.

So when the ground is not frozen solid and you are not wistfully humming to yourself  "In the bleak mid-winter", there are a number of things to be done in December:

• Cover any outdoor taps with something to stop the frost penetrating. Traditionally hessian cloth is used but any thick plastic or old cloth will work.
• Fish can suffer if their pond is covered with thick ice. Whilst it is not very sightly, a football in a pond that can be safely plucked out or even better, some thick timber lifted out will create some clear space in the ice. 
• Some plants have very sappy branches that "bleed" heavily when pruned. Now is the time to prune your Vines, Birches and Acers as the sap will have stopped flowing.
• Prune apples and pears ( but not those growing against walls) bearing in mind the ground rules of cutting out dead, diseased and crossed branches and creating space for light and air circulation. Further pruning will be necessary in the growing season to produce the best results.
• Stay off lawns in frosty conditions as it damages the structure of the grass. Getting the last of the leaves off the lawn will make for healthier lawn.
• Everyone will be hungry at this time of year including little furry creatures. If there is anything edible in your shed or greenhouse then make sure it is well sealed.

And why not give your local bird life a treat with some fat balls or other high protein winter feed? 

After all, they will not be the only ones swaying around near food at Christmas and checking out what is on offer.

                                                  

November : inner fires

November always seems a month of big changes.

The clocks, the colours, the temperature and the dampness in the air have all altered. Nature begins to turn in on itself by shutting down for the coming winter months. The seeds settle, the sap slows and the wildlife hunkers down.

So do I.

It is more of an effort to get the boots on in the half-light so when I do get out there I need to get on with it.

The main areas to tackle this month are:

• herbaceous plants can still be split (divided) and re-positioned while the soil is still warm.
• A number of shrubs that need hard pruning in Spring can be partially cut back in order that they don't "rock" (nothing to do with Freddie Mercury) or get damaged in the winter winds. Buddleja davidii, Lavatera and Cornus fall into this category.
• Give yourself something to look forward to by planting Tulips for the Spring. Plant to a depth of approx. 3 x the length of the bulb.
• Likewise you can plant up winter bedding in a basket, a window box or straight into a dull border. Use Wallflowers, Forget-Me-Nots ( brilliant with Tulips), Primula and Viola.
• Whilst many trees and shrubs can be safely moved and pruned now the Prunus species should be left until spring.
• Now is the perfect time to plant Roses - and to tidy up your existing ones so they do not look scraggly.
• Keep taking the leaves off the grass and watch out for fungi. They will mostly be harmless Saprophytic fungi but best not take a chance with children about.
• Bubble-wrap the ceramic pots and clean out your water butts; they will quickly re-fill at this time of year.
• Like me, the wildlife needs plenty of fuel for the cold. Putting out bird seed and feeders not only does the birds a favour, it can give us plenty of entertainment too. Be aware that every squirrel will be after that food too!

In short, wrap up well, go for it and if the weather allows, take a flask outside with you and just spend a few moments to drink it all in. Savour your cuppa but savour also the subtle colours that appear in the evening light. You will begin to see mauves, purples, dark oranges, deep blood reds and browns.

It's so good it's just about good enough to give you the patience for the madness that is coming next month. And if it isn't, then hack down a few more plants - in a loving, caring, tree-hugging way of course.

October: blowers and colours

If there is one thing that bothers me more than seeing Christmas advertised in late September, it is hearing leaf blowers being unleashed by their owners in early October.

I know I am sounding like a Luddite, eco-friendly Victor Meldrew. If you have ever been savouring the colours and crispness of an autumn morning only to have your inner Zen shattered by a demented, over-sized hair-dryer you will know what I mean.

The fact is that sodden leaves are rarely shifted by home-owned leaf blowers, so doing the job by hand will save a trip to the gym, build up your upper body strength and save money.

It will also be kinder to everyone within 100 meters trying to enjoy their weekend, especially neurotic garden designers. Still, toys will be toys.

So, having had my moan - what does one do with the leaves and what other tasks are there to see to?

• Leave the leaves if you can. They are a natural layer of insulation for over-wintering plants and will add organic matter to the borders. On lawns, driveways, paths and in ponds they are not good news so spread them over the borders or onto the compost. By adding a few inches of soil to the compost every foot or so (300mm), the leaves will break down faster and become the dark 'humus' that is so good for the garden.
• There is still time to make repairs to the lawn but aim to make your last cut this month leaving the grass no shorter than an inch (25mm). If your lawn has become full of thatch you can scarify it by using a soft-prong rake to scratch out the dead grass. 
• Lawn feed can be applied but make sure it is the autumn lawn feed as it will have less nitrogen.
• Trees, shrubs, hedging can be moved as their growing processes have slowed down but the soil is still warm so any damage can be kept to a minimum. 
• Herbaceous plants are best divided and moved at this time of year. Cut down the plants that are over but leave those with seed heads so the birds can eat them to build up their winter reserves.
• Prune your climbing roses by cutting back all stems just enough to prevent them shaking about too much in the winter weather. Tie in loose shoots or cut them back so they are not looking too wild. The main prune can be in a few months time.
• With the inevitable wet coming, try to avoid your patio pots and containers becoming water-logged. A tile or two, a clay "foot" or a few bricks will raise them enough to provide some airflow underneath.
• Check tree ties and stakes before the windy weather sets in.
• Move your tender plants into the greenhouse or cover them with a fleece.
• And finally: Christmas begins on 25th December. The run up to that is Advent ( read:'waiting').

The fun part this month comes when you have the bonfire to burn all those diseased leaves and branches. Check the wind direction first to see that the neighbours don't have all their washing hanging out for you to smoke. 

On the other hand, if they have the leaf blower going...

Courtesy of Matt @ The Daily Telegraph