Welcome to your gardening jobs guide for December – and can you believe it is the final one of the year?
It has been a fantastic year in the garden, and 2024 is filled with promise to be even better, so be sure to keep some green fingered goals in mind when setting your New Year’s Resolutions at the end of the month.
But before we get a little bit ahead of ourselves, there is plenty to do in the garden right now. Here are just a few suggestions to keep you on track.
If you are lucky enough to have a pond in your garden, this is the time of the year when there is a chance that it may freeze over.
Avoid breaking the ice by hammering down with a spade, as the shock waves caused could harm fish and wildlife.
Be prepared when frost is on the way by floating a rubber ball on the surface. Once the water has frozen, remove the ball, leaving behind a hole.
Moving away from the pond and to your beds and borders, the alpines of your garden will need all the light they can get at this time of year. Regularly remove any fallen leaves from around the crowns.
Plant a winter-flowering perfumed shrub, such as a Daphne odora or Viburnum bodnantese, to fill the garden with a delightful scent.
Control leaf spot on your hellebores, cordyline, yuccas and phormiums by spraying a fungicide.
Hoe the bases of trees and shrubs to keep them weed-free, tossing removed weeds onto the compost heap.
Your potted plants will be vulnerable to waterlogging in winter, which can cause the roots to rot. Raise them from the ground with pot feet or bricks, allowing the excess moisture to drain away.
Dry, windy weather will quickly dry out compost in pots – keep an eye on containers and water when necessary to keep the plants healthy.
Cut off dead stems from wall shrubs and climbers, then tie in any wayward shoots to prevent them from snapping off in windy weather. Remove dead, diseased or dying branches from deciduous trees.
Turning to the kitchen garden, cover up those winter cabbages, kale varieties, and any other remaining crops using a fine mesh. This will protect them from pigeons.
This is your last chance to pick those final apples and pears from trees. Store the fruit away in frost-free garages or sheds.
Prune red currant bushes by cutting away the leading shoots that developed this year to roughly 7.5cm of the older growth. Reduce the side branches to a single bud.
Check your stored beetroot, potatoes, carrots, turnips, and onions, discarding any that are soft or show signs of rotting.
Our last few reminders certainly should not be ignored!
When the weather turns dry, spend some time treating wooden fences, trellis, arches, or garden furniture with a preservative to protect from weathering. First remove any surface dirt, allow to dry, then don some gloves before applying oil, water, or paint-based preservatives.
Remove and replace wire supports used for training fruit against walls and fences with medium gauge galvanised wire.
Cover up compost bays and bins with a lid – even a piece of old carpet or heavy-duty plastic will stop the mix from turning soggy.
If a flurry of snow descends on the country, brush away snow from the tops of hedges and shrubs, as the added weight can cause branches to splay and eventually snap.
