This month’s top tips from Thetford Garden and Allotment Club’s Maggie Baldwin.
“The weather can be tricky at this time of the year. Increasingly, we are experiencing wetter winters and frosts that are generally less severe. This unfortunately means more pests and disease survive over the winter to haunt us in the Spring and Summer! I’ve taken the opportunity of tidying and decluttering my shed. Not only has it removed any pests hiding in there, I cleared out a few bits and pieces that were broken or out of date and it’s also made it easier to reach tools I need.
“If you received an Amaryllis (Hippeastrum) for a Christmas gift and the flowers have faded, cut back the stems to the base and keep feeding and watering the plant so that the leaves die down naturally. Keep it in a warm spot and it may flower for you next year if you’re lucky. Chillies and peppers require a long growing season to ripen, so sow them now in trays on a sunny windowsill or in a heated propagator.
“There are plenty of jobs to do outside in the garden. Before the birds start to nest, deciduous hedges such as Beech or Hornbeam can be pruned while they are dormant. Most shrub and bush roses can now be pruned. Remove any dead, damaged and diseased stems. For repeat-flowering roses, cut back by a third to a half. For single flowering roses, remove any old or leggy branches. Give them a feed afterwards with an organic fertiliser. Winter heathers can be cut back below flowered stems, but don’t prune too hard as they will not regenerate from old wood. Late flowering clematis, known as Group three, can be a tangle of stems. Now is the time to cut them down to the lowest pair of buds which will produce lots of strong new stems.
“Autumn raspberries can have last year’s canes cut down to ground level. New canes will start growing in the spring. After pruning work, add some blood, fish and bone fertiliser into the soil to help promote strong growth, and mulch with a thick layer (10cm) of homemade compost. Snowdrops make an appearance this month to brighten the days. Visit a garden where they have a good display such as Fullers Mill, the Perennial charity garden near Bury St Edmunds.”
Keep warm and happy gardening!
Maggie Baldwin
