The New Year is here, and it’s time to get back out into the garden! The weather may still be wintry, but there’s plenty to do in your greenhouse and even outdoors to get ready for a great spring and summer season. Here are our top 12 gardening tips for January.
12 gardening tips for January
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Provided the ground isn’t frozen or waterlogged, now’s a good time to plant bare-root hedging.
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If you didn’t plant spring-flowering bulbs last autumn, plant some growing bulbs now.
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Cut back any old perennial stems and leaves that have gone soggy in the winter rains and add them to your compost heap.
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Cut off any old tatty hellebore foliage and dispose of it. Getting rid of these leaves helps stop the spread of hellebore black spot (a fungal disease) and makes it easier to see the flowers. Leave the fresh new foliage to grow.
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Keep deadheading your winter pansies and violas, and they’ll reward you with a flush of flowers in spring.
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If you haven’t pruned your roses, you can still do it now and it’s easier to see what needs cutting when the plants are dormant. Give them a trim before they start growing, removing all weak and spindly growth and cutting back main branches by one-third above an outward-facing bud.
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Prune apple and pear trees, removing any dead, damaged or crossing branches and reducing congestion. Aim to create a tree with an open vase shape.
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Force rhubarb plants by covering them with a bucket. This will encourage the growth of delicious tender new stems for the table.
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Tidy up the greenhouse and clean out all those old flower pots so that you’re ready to go when it’s time to sow seeds in spring.
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Recycle your Christmas tree by putting it out for your local council collection, or chop it up and shred the branches to make mulch for your shrub borders.
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Keep bird feeders and birdbaths topped up to see your garden birds through the last cold months of winter. Remember to keep the water free from ice!
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Harvest the last of your parsnips and leeks for satisfying winter stews
BUT, if the weather’s too cold and wet to go outside, just get yourself a cup of tea, sit back and [plan this year’s garden. And don’t forget that your seed potatoes, onion sets, garlic bulbs are available this month for spring planting.
We have a fantastic range of plants, seeds and gardening kits at Merryhatton, so visit us soon and get your gardening year off to a great start!
you can also visit us online at https://www.merryhatton.co.uk/
