Gardening in December/January
The silly season is upon us which means longer, warmer days and entertaining outside again. It’s one of my favourite feelings picking vegetables from my garden and serving them with a home cooked meal for friends and family. Also having fresh bunches of flowers inside and giving some to your friends and family to take home. It’s the simple things in life that bring me so much joy.
As the days get longer and warmer, this also means the garden will be getting drier too. Watering is a very important job to keep your garden thriving. I have a few tips and tricks to help make watering your garden an enjoyable task rather than a burden and ensure you save time and water this Summer!
Jobs to do in the garden this December/January:
Tying up/staking plants
Add Mulch to retain moisture and prevent weeds
Make some compost
Regular watering
Cutting/Deadheading flowers
Protect Brassicas from whitebutterfly
Make earwig and slug traps
Watering tips and tricks:
Water the garden early in the morning or in the evening (I prefer to water in the evening). This will help to prevent water loss as it will give the water time to soak in before the heat of the day.
Use a hand held hose rather than a sprinkler where you can. Try and avoid watering the foliage of the plants as this prevents disease spread like powdery mildew.
If like me you are time poor at this time of year, don’t stress about hand watering. Just get a sprinkler going and move it around the garden every 15-30 minutes.
Deep water so that the water pools in the area you have watered, let it soak in and then you can give it more water if you have time.
On warm Summer evenings, pour yourself a nice cold drink and walk around hand watering your garden. I promise it will make for a lovely evening job.
And, don’t forget about plants in pots, they dry out much quicker than if they were in the garden. Water, water, water!
Deep watering, what is it and why do it?
Deep watering is when you apply large amounts of water less frequently. The idea is that by applying a lot of water in one go it will move down the soil profile below the root zone of the plants.
This then makes the roots grow down towards the water and suck it up making a longer and stronger root system and therefore more drought tolerant plants.
Cutting/deadheading flowers:
Dahlia’s, Sweetpeas and Cosmos are all flowers that love to be picked. The more you pick them the more they flower! It’s a win win for you, fill the house with flowers and more flowers will come. If you don’t pick them and the flowers go tatty or turn to a seed head. Try and remove as many dead heads as you can so they plant isn’t putting too much energy into reproducing but rather producing more flowers.
Make a Cocktail Herb Garden:
Create a simple summer entertaining garden with low fuss herbs and edible flowers for all your fun cocktails and salad garnishes.
Find a large pot or half a wine barrel.
Fill it with potting mix and some compst.
Plant a lemon tree in the centre.
Around the base of the lemon tree, plant out any of the following; Basil, Mint, Thyme, Borage, Nasturtiums, Alyssum, or Pansies.
Give it a good water in and keep watering all Summer long and enjoy your cocktail garden.
Activity for the kids - Create a Pollinator garden:
Looking after our pollinators is a very important thing that we can all do our bit for. Creating a pollinator garden not only looks beautiful but it creates food and habitats for our pollinators and friends.
The things you will need:
Bee Friendly Wild Flower Seeds
A garden bed or a medium-large sized pot with some potting mix in it
A watering can or spray bottle
Face mask
Prepare your seed bed by clearing the soil of any weeds and loosen the top soil.
If you’re using a pot, fill it with fresh potting mix (wear a mask while doing this).
Once your soil is ready, sprinkle your seeds evenly and then lightly scratch them into the soil with your hand or sprinkle some potting mix or compost on top.
Water the seeds in gently and then keep watering them each day (don’t over water them or the seeds will move around or rot).
In about 1 weeks time you will see the seeds have germinated. Keep watering them every couple of days and in a few weeks you will have yourself a pollinator garden.