Winter is upon us but there are still jobs that can be done before the hard frosts arrive.

• Harvest any vegetables and put them in store or make soups and put them in the freezer.
• Turn off the water supply to outdoor taps and after opening the tap insulate with a cover or some bubble wrap. 
• Also protect tender plants and pots from the weather.
• Prune apple and pear trees, if not sure how to do this the RHS website is excellent. Acers, birch and vines are best pruned before Christmas as the sap starts rising early to swell the new buds ready for spring.
• This is a great time to plant or transplant deciduous trees and shrubs to add some new structure to your garden for 2020.

Then there is the garden inside your home. Christmas isn’t Christmas without a poinsettia but they are fussy.  Keep them in a warm room (16-24C) away from draughts and don’t overwater. 

Indoor azaleas and cyclamen need an almost unheated area like a hallway or conservatory with regular watering so the compost does not dry out. 

Christmas cacti need a similar environment but can be dry on the surface of the compost before re-watering. 

If you have forced hyacinths or daffodils remember to turn them regularly as they will lean towards the light.  Treat forced bulbs as annuals and dispose of them when they are over.

Now is a wonderful time to enjoy walking in the countryside when there is not so much to do in the garden.  Many of the open gardens like Westonbirt, Tyntesfield and Stourhead are a treat at this time of year and a great way to blow away the winter blues.
 
A very Happy Christmas to you all,
The Tidy Gardener

The nights are longer but it’s still good to get out in the fresh air. Although the garden is slipping into winter hibernation there are still jobs to be done and little gems popping up out of the ground to bring a smile like cyclamen.

Rake up the fallen leaves regularly particularly from lawns, beds and ponds and add to the compost bin or put in a black bag in a spare corner for wonderful leaf mould.

If you are thinking of adding a rose, shrub, tree or bulbs to your garden try and plant them early in November before the ground loses its warmth. If your garden is small, plant a few pots up with tulips, small narcissi and crocuses and add a top of wire mesh to prevent squirrels. The display of bulbs will bring such joy in the spring. If unsure of what to do when planting anything there is so much information on line and the RHS site is very helpful indeed.

Now is the time to take the lawnmower to be serviced rather than leave it until spring, clean and oil gardening tools for winter storage and have a general tidy in the garage or shed.

Another useful job is to sort through pots and seed trays. Washing them and stacking in sizes helps enormously when the planting begins in the spring. Clean pots help prevent pest and disease problems and aid propagation.

Lastly, if you are lucky enough to have an apple tree apply a grease band to prevent winter moth, prune long stems on roses that might catch the wind and cause wind rock and please don’t forget our wonderful birds by feeding them through the winter. 

Happy gardening,
The Tidy Gardener

The domesticated apple (as opposed to the wild crab apple) has its origins in the fruit forests of the Tien Shan (heavenly mountains) on the borders of western China, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. 

Evolving there over countless millennia, the apple was then spread westward by bears, horses and man, being documented in Greek and Roman times.  It was probably brought to us by the Romans, although Celtic mythology may have us think otherwise.

Fast forward to today. Nature and the horticulturalists from the 18th to the early 20th century left us a legacy of apples with mouth-watering tastes to suit all palates. These cover the season from early August to the following April or May: Irish Peach, Beauty of Bath, Worcester Permain, Discovery, St Edmund’s Pippin, James Grieve, Lord Lambourne, Cox’s Orange Pippin, Egremont Russet, Ribston Pippin, Blenheim Orange, Ashmead’s Kernel, Rosemary Russet, Orleans Reinette, Laxton Superb, Kings Acre Pippin, Winston, Cornish Gilliflower, D’Arcy Spice, Sturmer Pippin to name but a few.
 
But today's main offers are of Braeburn, Gala, Pink lady, Jazz and Fiesta with the availability of Cox decreasing year on year.

As written as long ago as 1944, ‘…….the opportunity has been taken to recommend varieties to plant in fields and gardens……and these are very different things. You sell the one and the others should be so good that you would wish to eat them.’

Therein the difference: those grown today have mainly been bred abroad, thrive in warmer climates and are still largely grown abroad. They are more suitable for providing high yielding and reliable crops, more suitable for long-term storage thus fulfilling yearly contracts while maintaining crispness and flavour (and, arguably, still suit customers preferences).

But more are being grown here. This year, already, I would have been able to buy English Junami and Cripps Pink (stored), Discovery and Scrumptious (fresh from an independent store). In 2018 a new variety, English bred and grown for fresh eating, came to market, Sunburst. And trees of older varieties are readily available for the individual to grow and savour the best of English apples.

by Alan Caswell ...

September brings a change in season as autumn approaches, the leaves start to turn golden and the temperature starts to drop. There’s plenty to keep you busy in the garden this month.

Autumn is a fantastic time of year to plant your spring bulbs, feed your lawn or prepare for your winter vegetable planting. Buy spring bulbs and plant bulbs for colour at Christmas and spring, dead head roses as the plants will still give dead heads nutrients that could go into new flowers, give your lawn some tender loving care by raking, aerating and feeding with an autumn lawn fertiliser or its time to sow or lay new lawns.

As the temperature drops, it’s a good idea to protect border plants by mulching (organic mulches include formerly living material such as chopped leaves, straw, grass clippings, compost, wood chips, shredded bark, sawdust, pine needles, and even paper). It’s best to apply when the soil is damp or wet and make sure you weed first. It will help your soil from drying out, improve its texture and help protect the roots of tender plants such as dahlias or Verbena bonariensis (purpletop) from frost. A good two inch layer is best. There should always be room in your garden somewhere for a compost bin and don’t forget the woody materials too.

If you have violas, now is the time to take cuttings and start to bring those tender plants in from the garden. September is a great month for collecting seeds for next year now the flowers have gone over and the seed heads formed and dried. Extend the colour through to the end of the season with plants such as chrysanthemum, aster, daisy and sedum. You can also start to divide up large border perennials as the temperature cools to fills gaps next year. Don’t forget to water them in though.

Tomatoes and outdoor lettuce should be in abundance and the winter vegetables should really be coming into their own. Leeks, swede and parsnips should be almost ready to pull. Enjoy curly kale and cavolo nero for that first taste of delicious brassicas. Late crop potatoes should be out away from the slugs and the greenhouse prepared ready for autumn crops such as hardy lettuce and try a late crop of French beans. Make room in your greenhouse and pot up your parsley, mint and chives and they will keep growing over winter. Protect your fuchsias and pelargoniums and water sparingly over the winter months.

Lastly you must take time for your garden to bring you joy! Gardening and your garden can be a great help in ensuring that not just your physical but your mental health is looked after. Stop, look and listen to what is going on and just enjoy what you have created with the help of nature. Big or small, it doesn’t matter as long as you can enjoy what you have.                                       

Alan Caswell

We are all being advised to help the environment and recycle household waste. One of the campaigns being launched is to encourage homeowners to create their own compost.

It is easy to start a compost heap anytime of the year but late summer to early winter is the peak time for composting. At this time of year there is a lot of end of season garden waste to dispose of which can be the basis of composting.

Compost is a collection of food and plants that decomposes over several months before finally turning into humus which is an extremely nutrient-rich soil. Generally speaking you only need three things to start: water, browns and greens.

Browns refers to tree matter, like dead leaves, flowers, stems and twigs. Greens refers to grass cuttings, food waste. potato peel, fruit, vegetables and tea and coffee grounds.

Never put meat, dairy, bread or left over cooked meals in the compost as these would attract vermin.

Making compost is not difficult, just follow these instructions.

1. Select a container. The local council will advise you on this. It should be placed on a grassy, relatively shady part of the garden. It should have no bottom so that the compost heap is touching the ground. Pile a few inches of branches at the bottom to help aerate the heap. Air flow is critical to stop the compost getting too wet and therefore smelling.
2. A general rule is that the smaller the ingredients the quicker it will break up, so chop or break any big chunks. The ingredients for a successful compost heap are an equal balance of nitrogen -found in green materials, carbon in the brown matter and water. So start putting your dried leaves, grass clippings fruit, vegetables, dust from vacuuming, old herbs and spices, shredded news paper, human and pet hair, old wine and wine corks in the compost instead of your green bin. 
3. If you notice it is not decomposing or looking dry, add a little water.
4. Once a week aerate the pile slightly by using a spade to mix the materials around. 

The compost should be ready to use after a few months when it will be warm to the touch, develops an earthy smell and turns to a dark brown colour. This is one of the most powerful ingredients to feed the garden and making it helps with re-cycling waste.

Hazel Wyatt

The very first mistake is to believe your friends that gardening is easy and relaxing. It is hard work. When you visit gardens you will see many benches or seats to sit on. These are not for the gardener but the visitors!!.

Here are some mistakes to be aware of:

• Clueless watering - many new gardeners kill their plants by either drowning or letting them dry out too much too often. Know your plants moisture requirements.
  
• Over feeding - plants need to be fed especially pot grown plants but too much fertiliser is as dangerous to a plant as an overdose is to us.
  
• Forgetting about sun, shade and soil requirements - we are all guilty of buying plants we like and planting them where we want them and  wonder why they do not thrive. Read the labels.
  
• Planting too early - we have an unusual spell of early warm weather and get very excited. Supermarkets and garden centres entice us with bedding plants. We rush out  and plant them, then the weather changes to frost and even snow, which means the plants do not survive.
  
• Planting too close together - each plant needs its own space depending on its final size. They also need space to take nutrients and water from the soil without competing with their neighbours.
  

I am sure like me you will make many more mistakes but hopefully learn from them and have many years enjoying your garden and telling new gardeners how easy and relaxing a hobby it is.

Hazel Wyatt

Love it or hate it snow arrived. There were not many jobs listed in my last article that we could do. I did not say clear snow from paths. 

The snow did look beautiful and the hilly fields in Frenchay looked like a Swiss ski resort with adults and children having a wonderful time. Will we have lots of entries in the photographic section at Frenchay flower show later in the year? I hope so.

Another beauty peeping through the snow was the snowdrop. Galanthus nivalis, for many years I had no success growing this gem until I followed this advice. Snow drops do well in damp, light-shaded woodland or border. Add plenty of leaf mould or compost. They multiply of their own accord. 

Divide the clumps every three years. Lift them when they still have foliage and even when still in flower. Tease clumps of bulbs apart trying not to damage the roots. Replant in clusters and water in. Snowdrops also like growing in terracotta pots. Position these where you often pass.

Hoping for warmer weather soon,
Hazel Wyatt

Gardening at this time of year? Yes, you can start, Here are a few ideas to get you motivated or you can choose the alternative idea.
 
At a Glance:

• Make sure that birds have food and water
• Keep on top of winter germinating weeds
• Clear the crowns of plants of damp leaves
• Continue with winter digging as soil conditions allow, cover to keep out the wet
• Order seeds and summer flowering bulbs
  
• Check newly planted trees and shrubs ,refirm if lifted by frosts
• Check supports of trees and shrubs
• Protect plants vulnerable to wind and cold
• Plant deciduous hedging
• Prune shrubs and trees into shape ..not on frosty days
• Prune wisteria and other vigorous climbers
• Take hardwood cuttings of trees and shrubs 
• Check forced bulbs for growth
• Sow sweet peas under cover
• Aerate lawns to  improve drainage
• Keep a small area of ponds free from ice
• Chit early potatoes
• Sow early vegetable crops under cover
• Protect fruit trees from bird damage 
• Force rhubarb
• Sow some summer -bedding under cover

 
Last Chance:

• Prune grape vines and other vines  before sap starts rising
• Protect container plants from freezing and insulate outside taps

 
Alternative idea:
Sit in a comfortable chair with a good book, preferably a gardening book!
 
Hazel Wyatt

This summer it has been very challenging to keep the borders looking their best. Lawns if they look anything like mine, resemble sandy beaches and the borders struggle to keep flowering.
 
My favourite plant for many years has been the Agapanthus. This year the ‘beast from the east’ slowed it down a little but then it enjoyed the summer sunshine and survived very well in drought conditions.
 
Pot grown ones did need watering  and feeding regularly. Commonly known as the African Lily, it is a
vigorous perennial with fleshy roots from South Africa. Despite their South African origins, they are easy to grow in the UK. Some species are evergreen and these tend to be less hardy than the deciduous varieties that die down completely over winter. 
 
Agapanthus grow best in full sun in a well-drained soil. Planting in shade will result in poor flowering. If your soil is thick or heavy, plant with grit or compost to loosen surrounding area. They dislike being waterlogged in winter and in colder parts of the country prone to frosts, should be grown in large pots which can be protected in winter in a cold frame, greenhouse or conservatory. I grow them in pots, and shelter them in winter. The hardier varieties will grow in borders covered with a mulch for protection.
 
The last 2 years I grew some in window boxes with great success. They had 3 foot stems dancing above the pelargoniums and fuschias. It is important to feed them weekly or fortnightly with a balanced liquid feed during the growing season until flowers begin to show colour.
 
Agapanthus will be reluctant to flower next year if subjected to drought conditions after flowering. To ensure a good display next year, keep plants moist until autumn after flowers start to fade. This will encourage the development of new flower buds.
 
If you are fond of the colour blue, Agapanthus are the plants for you. There is nothing better for an infusion of midsummer blue than a border or pot lined path of Agapanthus. They come in a range of colours and heights from almost black through to purple, from French navy to royal blue, to subtle lilac, pink, grey and white.
 
With careful planning borders in July to late September could be filled with varieties of Agapanthus of all heights from 20cm dwarf forms to giants up to 2 metres.
 
As usual space is running out. Look up more information on varieties and start planning for next season. I mention one unusual variety I bought a few weeks ago, Agapanthus Graskop. The buds emerge almost black and are held erect atop tall stems, slowly elongating and finally becoming pendulous as they open. It is hardy and can be grown in containers or borders. This winter I will nurture it in the conservatory.                                                                 
 
Hazel Wyatt