Winter solstice gardening tips
What to do in the garden this month…
Approaching the Winter solstice in the Northern hemisphere brings time for reflection, protection and imagining the new as light slowly returns. Here are some tips for the garden at this time.
Plant garlic; check that the variety you have is suitable for Autumn planting (some varieties don’t like the cold and need to be planted in the Spring). Garlic generally needs a period of cold to help with bulb formation. Keep garlic sunned (plant in a spot that gets the sun), fed (prepare the bed with good compost or you can top dress with compost in the Spring when the garlic is growing more), weeded and watered for those elusive large bulbs.
Sow broad beans in pots/trays- it's getting a bit late in the year for direct sowing, but you can raise broad beans in pots and trays indoors for planting out in the warming weather of February.
Keep kale, Brussel sprouts, cabbages, and purple sprouting broccoli netted from hungry pigeons.
You can use fleece or straw around parsnips and leeks to prevent the ground from freezing. Trying to dig up frozen veg is not that easy!
It’s a great time over the next few months for planting bare root trees, hedges, shrubs, roses, fruit bushes and rhubarb.
Look after wildlife by hanging bird feeders, maintaining bird baths, and making habitats like bug hotels and dead hedges made from winter prunings. Immaculate gardens aren’t good habitat for diverse wildlife.
Prune fruit bushes and trees during the dormant period (but avoid pruning peaches, plums and cherry trees as they can get disease if pruned in the colder months - do those in the Summer, instead).
Seed orders; it's a great time to plan the next growing season and to organise and acquire seeds. Seeds can make great Christmas presents, too.
Autumn bulb planting has come to an end now. I recently planted some foxtail lilies that I’m very excited about. Take time now to think about Spring planted bulbs like agapanthus, nerines, and gladioli.
Build compost heaps and rake up fallen leaves to make into leaf mould. I pick mine up with a lawnmower, this shreds the leaves and mixes in grass clipping to speed up the composting. I then store the leaves and grass clippings in builder’s sacks for a year or two.
General maintenance; there is always maintenance to do! Finally, whilst the garden is quiet, there's time for fixing that old timber frame! I recently had the time to build a bench, made from a slab of local Beech. I situated the bench by the pond, close to the gentle rhythmic sounds of the flowform.
Feed and protect the soil with well rotted manure or sieved compost, I find that a Winter application helps the soil to integrate the compost better. It also gives me a nice feeling; it feels like I’m taking care of the veg beds and tucking them up for the Winter.
For those interested in Biodynamics, it can be a good time for applying the preparation BD500. It is used to assist soil processes and is often used when preparing soil, applying composts, sowing and planting.
Chard can be picked throughout the year, including through the Winter. You may find though, that the frost will cause the outer leaves to rot. I like to remove these damaged outer leaves and compost them. Chard can be sown into pots in the late Summer/early Autumn (or sown direct) for growing in a greenhouse or polytunnel to prevent Winter frost damage. Remember this for next year! You can also have a go at transplanting the chard you have growing in the garden into a greenhouse or polytunnel for the Winter months. In the Spring, the chard will flower and set seed, meaning you will have a continuous supply of chard.
You can also transfer your parsley in to the greenhouse or polytunnel over the Winter. You will then ensure, in that slightly more sheltered environment, that you will get better quality leaf growth for over Winter consumption of this delicious herb.
By Darshan Robson