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Check tree
ties & plant supports for wear.
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Last chance to plant Garlic
Bulbs |
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Link: Composting |
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Lift
& frost rhubarb crowns for forcing. |
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Order
your seeds online. |
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Order seed
potatoes this month. |
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Box
up seed potatoes with the rose end uppermost.
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In mild
areas sow broad beans.
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Links: Vegetables
- Potatoes
- Mushrooms - Vegetable
Seeds |
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If pruning is
necessary cut out dead wood in all types of fruit
trees.
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Remove big
buds on blackcurrants.
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Links: Fruit
- Apples
- Strawberries |
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Tidy borders
& fork lightly between perennials.
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Sweet peas
- Pinch out the tips of seedlings raised from autumn sowings to
encourage sideshoots to form bushy plants.
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Continue planting
bare-rooted roses. Avoid
planting new roses where old ones have been removed, unless the soil
is replaced and conditioned, to avoid diseases. |
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Check corms and tubers in store for signs of rot or
deterioration. Remove diseased ones and sprinkle good ones with
'Bordeaux Mixture'
to prevent disease attack.
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Links:
Bedding
Plants & Annuals - Plants
- Flowers
that attract wildlife - Alpines |
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Hanging
Baskets - Roses
- Climbing
Plants - Fuchsias |
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This is a good
time to move shrubs that are growing in the wrong place or those
that have outgrown their position. Aim to lift
established plants with as large a rootball as possible. Prepare
the soil in the new planting hole well, digging compost deeply into
it. Firm the soil around the transplanted shrub, and provide a stake
for support if required. Water in well and mulch with bark or
compost. It may be necessary to prune out a few shoots from very
large transplanted shrubs, as the damaged root system may not be
able to support them.
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Be ready to brush snow from evergreen shrubs and conifers, as the weight can weigh down and damage their branches.
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Check your
frost protection on new or non hardy shrubs.
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Mulch
Azaleas,
Rhododendrons
etc. |
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Links:
Conifers
- Japanese
Maples - Trees
- Magnolias
- Rhododendrons
- Plants |
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Palm
Trees - Hedging
- Topiary |
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Brush off
dead leaves & twigs.
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Rake mossy
& weedy areas.
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Service your
mower.
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Deter
children & pets from using the lawn when its wet.
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Links:
Lawns
- Lawn
Mowers |
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Sow leeks,
onions, carrots, lettuce. |
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Sow annuals
for early flowering. |
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Clean &
fumigate staging
&
pots. |
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Take cuttings
of late chrysanthemums. |
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Links:
Greenhouses
- Tomatoes
- Cucumbers |
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Keep plants
on the dry side and in the best possible light.
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Bring in
winter
jasmine, daphnia, American current
etc. to flower inside.
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Keep
winter-flowering house
plants
in a cool position in good light to
extend their flowering season, avoiding draughts or any dry hot
spots, such as on a table by a fire or radiator. Move tender plants from
cold windowsills at night and bring them into the centre of the room. |
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Do not rush
bulbs into light wait until the leaves and flowers can be seen. |
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Links:
House
Plants - Orchids |
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Float a ball on the water to
assist aeration in icy periods. |
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Keep water clear of debris. |
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Links:
Water
Gardening - Water
Features - Aquatic
Plants |
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Look
out for... |
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Hibernating
Seven-spot ladybirds |
| These
ladybirds have a varied diet of small insects but
favour plant-lice and aphids. They are known as
the gardener's friend as they eat garden pests.
The average seven-spot will eat more than 5,000
aphids in its year-long life. |
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Description:
These bright red ladybirds are approximately 5-6mm long. While looking for 7-spot ladybirds you may encounter other species of ladybird.
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They can be identified using
the website:
www.ladybird-survey.org. |
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Where to find them: Adult beetles can be found
resting either on twiggy shrubs or on winter leaves.
Ladybirds will hibernate in large groups in sites which are
used year after year. It is thought that pheromones are
released by hibernating ladybirds which attract other
ladybirds to hibernate in the same place. Ladybirds can be
seen piled on top of one another while hibernating, the
advantage of this is perhaps that less heat is lost,
increasing their chances of surviving the cold of winter. |
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Links:
Wildlife
- Birds - Frogs,
Toads & Newts - Hedgehogs |
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Flowers
that attract wildlife |
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Links:
Shows &
Events Calendar - Chelsea
Flower Show - Hampton
Court Flower Show |
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Tatton
Park Flower Show |
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