January may be the first month of the year but it doesn’t feel like the first month of the gardening year .. for me that will be in Spring when the green shoots begin to appear. January feels like a quiet time for me so here are some quiet jobs to do this month:
Roll your sleeves up … cleaning pots and greenhouses now will get you ready for the Spring sowings so get ahead of the game and spend some time in your shed/greenhouse or just outside washing pots and throwing anything away that is broken.
Cut back dead leaves and flowerstems from perennials when they look scruffy.
Remove leaves from Hellebores to show the flowers off better.
Apple and Pear trees can be pruned now as can Gooseberries and Currant bushes.
For a lovely job on a wet and windy day plan your seed sowing.. Seeds shoudl be kept in a bark, dry place. The Quality Street tin you got for Christmas is perfect! Keep it indoors rather than outside. Feb-March is the time to start sowing seeds so now is the time to choose and order them. This can all be done from the comfort of your armchair. I love Chiltern Seeds and Higgledy Garden for good UK seeds with loads of choice.
Or book a Garden Hoedown for an hour of one to one garden therapy and you’ll come away with a personalised action plan to get the most out of your garden!
Here are your list of Garden To-Dos for December :
Outdoor Pots : A cold spell is due this month so protect your potted plants by raising them up off the ground to protect from ground frost. Bring them close to your house or walls in groups to give them some shelter from the elements and to create a micro climate of pots next to a warn wall. Anything really tender might need wrapping in breathable fleece or by being moved into a greenhouse or shed.
Leaf clearing : Leaves should be cleared from lawns and from around smaller leafed plants like alpines .. they need some room to breathe and more importantly for air to ventilate their own stems and leaves. Create leaf piles in the backs of beds or in untidy corners for insects to over winter in.
Planting : Continue planting trees and shrubs throughout the winter avoiding really water logged or frozen soil. This is the time to plant bare root plants such as Roses, which are really good value for money. Cold winds and frost can loosen the soil around recently planted trees and shrubs .. so keep an eye on anything you’ve planted and firm down the soil if required.
Pruning and Tying in : Most deciduous trees and shrubs, including Roses can be pruned over the Winter and its easier to see what you’re doing when there are no leaves on. Make sure any climbers are tied in securely to their supports to avoid any damage over the Winter.
Harvest : Its time to lift any parsnips and root crops you have left in the ground. After the first frost is the foilk lore for parsnips so their starch turns to sugar and makes them nice and sweet! Even better roasted in the oven and drizzled in honey for the last 15 minutes!
Or book a Garden Hoedown for an hour of one to one garden therapy and you’ll come away with a personalised action plan to get the most out of your garden!
A Garden Hoedown is what I called my Garden Consultation Service, purely because ‘Garden Consultation’ sounds so boring! Someone once called it Garden Therapy as they were feeling so stressed and overwhelmed by their garden and not enjoying it all! Others have found it really helpful at different times:
– perhaps you’ve recently moved in and are overwhelmed by the garden you’ve inherited
– you’re about to put your house on the market and want it to make a good impression
– you’ve just built an extension and can now see your garden more
– or perhaps you’ve spent the last 18 months using it more and you have a niggly feeling it could be working better for all the family!
The Covid Lockdowns have made us look at our outdoor spaces in a different way. Being in our gardens has made us re-think and re-prioritise all sorts of things as our gardens have given different meanings for all members of the family. You might have gained a puppy, or be working from home more. You might want to entertain outside more often and for a longer part of the year, or you might want to continue to the quiet and solace your garden brought you.
A Hoedown might be for you if you don’t need a full garden design but want input from a professional garden designer, gardener and prolific garden user! Here’s how it works:
Here’s what Claire had to say following our Hoedown:
“I spent a lovely hour in my back garden with Renée having a Hoedown. She is so enthusiastic and knowledgeable. I feel very inspired now and, most importantly, confident that I can change my garden to suit my family. Renée listened to what I hoped to achieve and asked all the right questions. I can’t wait to get started and thanks to Renée’s follow-up email with links and reminders of what we talked about it didn’t matter that I forgot most of the plant names we talked about! Thank you”
In your garden for an hour! I bring my secateurs, a blank pad of paper, pens and my trowel
I send you a Summary report afterwards – including any sketch ideas and links to inspiration, suppliers, contractors, or plants
COST: £150 within a 5-mile radius of Redhill paid upfront to secure the meeting (I’m more than happy to travel further afield but will need to factor in travel time and costs)
You can also buy a Hoedown Voucher for a loved one who is not enjoying their garden. So if you know someone who you think could do with some Garden Therapy.
Buy your Voucher here and I will be in touch for the wording and contact details.
What would you want us to spend our hour discussing? Let me know in the comments below!
Here are your list of Garden To-Dos for November :
Lavender : Cut back the flower stems of Lavender and trim each stem down by half to stop them getting leggy. Cut back into a section that still has green leaves though as bare woody sections won’t grow again.
Roses : Prune long stems of Roses by a third so they don’t get damaged in any high winds over the Winter.Remove the fallen leaves of Roses if they had black spot this year to reduce the risk of infection again next year. Don;t put these leaves in a compost bin that you will use.
Lawns : Aerate your lawn by pricking it with a garden fork all over. This helps with compaction but also allows space for oxygen to get into the soil.
General Tidy Up : Don;t tidy up too much! Seed heads create beautiful silhouettes during the Winter but are also a food source for wildlife.Remove leaves from lawns but create leaf piles in the backs of beds or in untidy corners for insects to over winter in. Raking leaves is a great workout!
Compost : if you’re emptying pots of summer bedding … spread the compost from the pots on your beds as a mulch. Now’s the time to also empty your compost bins. Anything at the bottom that’s broken down into a nice brown, crumbly consistency can be spread on your flower and vegetable beds to add its nutrients into your soil. No need to dig it in .. the Winter frosts will break it down for you.
A Hoedown is what I called my Garden Consultation Service, purely because ‘Garden Consultation’ sounds so boring!
Someone called it Garden Therapy as they were feeling so stressed and overwhelmed by their garden and not enjoying it all! Others have found it really helpful at different times:
perhaps you’ve recently moved in and are overwhelmed by the garden you’ve inherited
you’re about to put your house on the market and want it to make a good impression
you’ve just built an extension and can now see your garden more
or perhaps you’ve spent the last 18 months using it more and you have a niggly feeling it could be working better for all the family!
This last few years have changed everything. With the onset of Covid and the various lockdowns we’ve found ourselves in since March 2020, being outdoors and in our gardens has made us re-think and re-prioritise all sorts of things as our gardens have become safe havens for all the family. Working throughout lockdown has meant I’ve had to be creative so I now have 2 offerings if you’re looking for some input into your garden:
Face to Face Hoedown
In your garden WITH a cuppa for an hour!
In your garden with payment upfront by BACS
Summary report sent afterwards so you don’t have to take any notes – including any sketch ideas and links to inspiration, suppliers, contractors, or plants
COST: £125 within a 5-mile radius of Redhill (I’m more than happy to travel further afield but will need to factor in travel time and costs)
Virtual Hoedown
Phone conversation to confirm priority areas (I’d suggest that design, layout, planting ideas work best this way)
Photos and video sent of the space before our meeting with guidance from me of best angles etc
Payment upfront by BACS
1-hour virtual meeting held at an agreed time from your home WITH a cuppa for an hour over Zoom
Summary report sent afterwards so you don’t have to take any notes – including any sketch ideas and links to inspiration, suppliers, contractors, or plants
Here’s what Claire had to say following our Hoedown:
“I spent a lovely hour in my back garden with Renée having a Hoedown. She is so enthusiastic and knowledgeable. I feel very inspired now and, most importantly, confident that I can change my garden to suit my family. Renée listened to what I hoped to achieve and asked all the right questions. I can’t wait to get started and thanks to Renée’s follow-up email with links and reminders of what we talked about it didn’t matter that I forgot most of the plant names we talked about! Thank you.”
Renee’s head and shoulders
What would you want us to spend our hour discussing? Let me know in the comments below!
