Monthly Garden Diary - January 2007

Introduction

Most gardens are paved with good intentions and planted with wishful thinking. That’s because few of us have enough time to spend on our gardens and most of us are usually trying to catch up on the essentials rather than creating something new. Having a realistic plan will help get your priorities right and using time-saving gardening aids will ensure the efforts will be well rewarded. These regular monthly Newsletters will provide a skeleton outline of what to do when, but if you plan a major project of creating a new lawn or a new patio area, then the majority of your time is best devoted only to that area.

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  Read previous editions of our garden diary in the archives

New Year Resolutions

1. Feed the lawn early in Spring

We all need to get our lawns in order as early as possible in the Spring, so that they are thick, green and healthy before the Summer sun shines. Applying a lawn feed that feeds for several weeks will give the roots enough energy to grow longer and deeper where they can most easily avoid the dryer surface. I will be applying EverGreen “I Want To Feed My Lawn After Cutting” - the new name for EverGreen Lawn Food that will prove attractive to anyone who has bought into the ‘apply after cutting’ concept. This new and improved formulation feeds and greens for up to 6 weeks and a real long-lasting lawn food that makes a big difference that anyone will see. To tie in with our warmer climate, it has an improved drought tolerant formulation that doesn’t need to be watered in and it also contains a wetting agent.

2. Plant bedding plants earlier

My grandfather told me that we could expect frosts in the London area as late as the end of May. That may have been true 50 years ago, but apart from rare fluke conditions frosts in May are most unlikely. With this in mind and the benefit of horticultural fleece or sheets of newspaper to throw over tender plants if the weather man gives me fair warning, I intend to plant out geraniums and begonias as early in May as possible.

3. Feed roses and shrubs early

I already have in the garage a pot full of Miracle-Gro Slow Release Rose & Shrub Food and it will be applied early in March around all of my flowering shrubs. It’s never too early to apply a slow release plant food like this as only when soil temperatures rise do the miraculous granules start releasing their plant nutrients. Best of all this one application means the plants will be fed slowly and steadily for the next six months.

4. Mulch everything in site

Last Summer was a nightmare trying to keep bedding plants well watered with a watering can and my precious rain reserves held in three interconnecting water butts. This year I’m determined to add organic matter such as Miracle-Gro EcoSense Soil Improver into the soil and to mulch the surface with Levington Water Saving Decorative Bark. In this way I know that the soil will hold onto more water and evaporation from the soil surface will be reduced to a minimum.

5. Keep paths and gravel drives weed-free

It’s quick and easy to kill weeds, but the trick is to use a product that does more than kill existing weeds. Pathclear Season-Long gives long-term control of weeds and it kills the weeds that are already there and puts down a chemical barrier that prevent new weed seedlings from germinating. In this way one application can keep paths and drives weed-free for up to 3 months.

6. Spray roses early to prevent blackspot

Last year the foliage of many roses were covered in blackspot disease and causing the leaves to fall off the stems well before the end of the season. The way to stop the disease from getting into roses is to spray them in March with a systemic fungicide just as the leaves are beginning to unfurl. RoseClear 3 or Fungus Clear do an excellent job and you can buy ready-to-use sprayers such as RoseClear 3 Gun! and FungusClear 2 Gun! that need no mixing or measuring. All these sprays protect the new growth and if thorough spraying is repeated a couple of weeks later will give the roses a very clean start to 2007. Regular treatment throughout the Summer will ensure your roses remain in tip-top condition.

Ornamental Gardening

It’s an exciting time when you and your family can get together to sow seeds of flowering plants for this year’s garden, patio pots and hanging baskets. Some seeds need a few months growth before they will flower and candidates for January sowing include begonias, lobelia, salvia, verbena and geraniums.

You don’t need a heated greenhouse or conservatory to grow seeds successfully, although they do help. For most amateur gardeners space on a windowsill protected by double glazing is sufficient to germinate most seeds and to keep a host of beautiful flowers in good growing conditions. Simply follow the instructions on the packet and use a quality compost to give your seedlings every chance of success. Levington Seed & Cutting Compost is the brand the experts choose as it contains the ideal nutrient level for maximum germination and guarantee stronger, healthier and more colourful plants. If you need one compost that can be used both for germination and potting on your seedlings then Levington Multi-Purpose Compost is the one to buy.

Garden Centres will soon have in stock ready-germinated pots of seedlings that are ready for you to pull gently apart and then transplant into fresh compost. Professional growers such as Kinder Plants, Plug U Grow and Colourpots have done all the temperature-vital work that ensures good germination, so if you don’t think you can provide the right conditions, here’s a quick and easy way to get great results. All you need is a fresh bag of potting compost such as Miracle-Gro All Purpose Growing Compost or Levington Multi-Purpose Compost and some trays in which to give each seedling the space they need to grow. High temperatures are not required, just enough heat to encourage strong growth in good light.

Out in the garden Winter-flowering shrubs such as witch hazel, Winter jasmine and various viburnums will be providing colour and perfume. To provide interest indoors cut a few branches to make the basis of a January flower arrangement.

Sow sweet peas in deep pots or tubes so that the roots have a good long run. Some of the dark flowered varieties have extra hard coats that are difficult to germinate. To overcome this problem either nick the seeds with a sharp knife or soak in water for a few hours changing the water every hour.

Roses, Trees and Shrubs

While most plants are dormant, it’s a good time to prune back rampant climbers to reduce leaf growth and to ensure they bloom well. Wisteria sinensis is one such climber that demands this sort of attention if it is to provide a mass of flower-trails. Left to its own devises wisteria can turn into a mass of green leaves that carry very little flower. To encourage plenty of flowers cut back any main stems that are not needed to build up the framework and cut back all the sideshoots to about 8 - 10cm (3 and 4in). Do this now while the plant is dormant.

The tangled growth of late flowering clematis can also be cut back to within a few inches of the soil, thus encouraging strong new shoots and taking away any growth that continues to carry any powdery mildew on the dead leaves.

Established climbing roses can be cut back and the new long shoots tied down to encourage lateral growth along their length. At this time of the year these new shoots can be bent down to a horizontal position without damaging buds or risk of them snapping.

Unwanted branches of shrub roses too can be cut out at this time of year. Aim to remove any dead or weak branches leaving the strong newer branches untouched.

Late season flowering shrubs such as Caryopteris and Ceratostigma can be given a general overall pruning to encourage the growth of vigorous flowering shoots. Leave stems a few centimetres long so that you know where not to dig and where to apply your Spring fertiliser.

Fruit and Vegetables

Clear weeds and grass from around the stems of established fruit bushes, trees and canes and add a 8cm (3in) layer of organic material as far out as the widest branch. Tease this material into the soil surface to improve compaction and soil fertility. For feeding as well as soil improvement use Miracle-Gro Ecosense Soil Improver. This well-composted organic material has been enriched with Miracle-Gro Plant Food so that it also feeds for up to 3 months, as well as increasing the water-holding capacity of all soils. This in no way replaces proper feeding that is best carried out in early March with Osmocote Slow Release Plant Food just as the plants burst into life again.

Winter pruning of fruit trees is a matter of keeping the tree within the shape and size you want and discouraging too many crossing branches, long side shoots (laterals) and unproductive branches. First cut out any dead or diseased branches and then cut back by half any side shoots that are getting out of control.

Regular control like this will keep your trees in shape and also encourage the short stubby side shoots called spurs which carry the fruit on most apple and pear trees.

Shallots are a versatile and easily grown vegetable that have a specific role to play in the kitchen when a gentle onion flavour is required.

Unlike onion sets which just grow much bigger when planted in the garden, shallot sets multiply in number, producing six or seven new bulbs where one was planted. During the first half of the year the shallot bulbs multiply steadily and are ready for harvest in mid Summer. They are easily stored throughout Autumn and Winter and provide a store of flavour that is invaluable.

Plant out shallots in shallow drills, leaving a space of around 20cm (8 in) between bulbs in rows 30cm (12 in) apart. Remove any dead foliage from the tops of the bulbs before planting or birds will pull out the bulbs from the earth to use this dried material for their nests.

If you have an unheated greenhouse or cold frame, sow broad bean seed in individual pots of Levington Multi-Pupose Compost and store them under cover. They may take time to germinate in the cold weather of January, but you will have some strong seedlings to plant out in open soil at the beginning of March.

Dig parsnips and leeks in mild spells when the ground is not frozen hard. Leave them on the soil surface until required in the kitchen.

Check the supports for tall Brussels sprouts to ensure they don’t rock in the wind and loosen the soil. If you have no supports then pull soil around the base of the stem and tread down firmly. A cover of netting over the tops of Winter brassicas will help to protect them from pigeons.

If you like a little Winter exercise dig over bare soil incorporating as much well-rotted garden compost and bags of Miracle-Gro Ecosense Soil Improver as possible. Only work on the soil when the surface is suitable. Leave the surface rough and dig out any roots of tough weeds as you go. Don’t overdo digging. It is hard work and is best carried out a little and often.