Explore things to do in your garden every month
Gardening in January
January is the start of an exciting new year in the garden. The weather may be cold, but if you look, you can see the first signs of spring outdoors, with bulbs poking up out of the ground and the days growing ever so slightly longer. Indoors there are seeds to sow, and January is also an ideal month to plant bare-root shrubs and trees. It’s time to get ready for a great year of gardening.
Things to do this month
Walk your garden to see which plants are in flower - there are often some surprises!
Insulate outdoor containers from frost - bubblewrap works well.
Raise containers onto pot feet to prevent waterlogging if you haven’t already done it.
Avoid walking on frosty or snow-covered lawns, as this can damage the grass.
Keep bird feeders topped up and defrost bird baths
Use a garden shredder to turn the branches of your Christmas tree into garden mulch, and chop up the trunk to make a log pile for wildlife.
Clean your garden tools and get them serviced if they need it.
Check any stored vegetables and summer bulbs (for example dahlias) and discard any that are mouldy or starting to rot.
Keep an eye on your indoor plants, as central heating can often make the atmosphere too dry for them. Mist plants regularly or stand pots on a tray filled with pebbles and topped up with water.
Brush snow off the roofs of greenhouses and conservatories so that plants can get all the available light.
Plant bare root shrubs and roses.
If you haven’t pruned your climbing roses yet, do it now, cutting back last year’s flowered side shoots by a third of their length.
Keep feeding wild birds with high-energy bird foods to keep up their strength through the winter.
Make sure wild birds have access to unfrozen water to drink and bathe in.
You can still move deciduous small trees, shrubs and climbers growing in the wrong place.
Clean old pots and seed trays, so that they’re ready for seed sowing in spring.
Melt an area of ice on frozen ponds to allow fish to breathe.
Check your mower blade and either replace it with a new one or have it sharpened.
On mild days, treat fences and other wooden structures with a wood preservative.
Use a weed-control membrane when planting up new beds to help keep them weed free.