FLOWER GARDEN

• Shake heavy snow off evergreens and conifers
• Tie in upright (fastigiate) conifers with bands of wire to stop wind and snow spoiling their shape
• Study summer bulb catalogues and order bulbs
• Order seeds
• Order plug plants of tender perennials to grow on in a cold greenhouse for summer display
• Protect crowns of hardy fuchsias with straw or bark
• Protect polyanthus buds from birds with black cotton
• Service the lawn mower
• Float a ball on the surface of the pond to keep some of it ice-free so fish and wildlife can breathe. Never break ice
• Firm down newly-planted plants which have been lifted by frost

CONTAINER GARDENING

• Dead-head winter-flowering pansies
• Avoid over watering, but don’t let compost dry out completely

KITCHEN GARDEN

• Winter—prune fruit trees such as apples — remove dead wood and overcrowded spurs to stimulate growth
• Continue winter digging, provided ground is frost-free
• Cover rhubarb crowns with straw and a large pot to produce tender, pink shoots

GREENHOUSE

• Start sowing in the heated greenhouse beognias, lobelia and antirrhinum first
• Sow leeks and brassicas
• Chit seed potatoes, placing them in trays in a cool light. This speeds up growth when you plant in six weeks’ time
• In a heated greenhouse, pot up canna rhizomes to start them into growth
• If temperatures drop, cover plants with sheets of newspaper
• Check plants and pick off any sign of aphids and grey mould fungus
• Sow sweet peas if you didn’t do it in October

Know your soil type
If you don’t know the pH of your soil, now’s a good time to get a simple testing kit from a garden centre. Low pH indicates acid soil, suitable for plants such as rhododendrons, azaleas, many heathers and camellias, as well as blue hydrangea flowers. Alkaline or chalky soils have a high pH, and suit lime-loving plants.

Now’s The Time

•  Paint Fences
  In Fine weather take the chance to treat fences with wood preservative while plants are dormant.
  Modern wood preservatives don’t damage green foliage.
• Check Houseplants
  Move delicate houseplants from cold windowsills at night.
  Wipe away dust from leathery-leaved specimens with a damp cloth.
• Treat Indoor Bulbs
  Deadhead hyacinths and daffodils after they have flowered in the house.
  Transfer the pots to a sheltered position while the foliage dies down, then plant the bulbs out in the garden in spring.
• Renovate Hedges
  Old hedges of yew, lonicera and beech (but not conifers such as leylandii) stand hard pruning back to the main stem.
  Feed and mulch to encourage new growth.
• Take Root cuttings
  Propagate herbaceous plants such as oriental poppies and verbascum from root cuttings.
  Lift a plant or scrape away the soil to expose its roots.
  Cut roots into 5-10cm sections.
  Plant vertically in pots and put into a cold frame until they sprout.