Gardening Tips

Gardening tips for November

Leaves are now falling rapidly and often wind and rain increases — we will not want to be in our gardens so often! However there will be some fine days, perhaps the first frosts and there are a few jobs to do. Have some fleece handy to protect delicate plants. Now is a good time to insulate outside taps. Most flowers are well past their peak and should be dead headed but pansies and violas in tubs and baskets should be looking good. Tubs should be off the ground to avoid saturation. Lift dahlia tubers and store in a frost free shed. Make sure young trees and shrubs are tied securely to prevent “wind rock”. Reduce the height of roses for the same reason. Plant bare root roses, spreading out roots, in well prepared soil. Finish tidying up herbaceous beds and general tidying in the garden — the major job being raking/sweeping leaves.

Net brassicas against hungry pigeons and remove yellowing leaves, they encourage disease. Some sprouts and leeks may be ready. Spread vacant ground with compost/manure and roughly dig in. Hopefully lawns will have had their last cut, you could get your machine serviced and be “ahead of the game”!! I read somewhere that mowers should be emptied of unleaded petrol as it does not “keep” and could cause problems with your machine next year.

Next month we will be well a truly thinking Christmas and our gardens, apart from late falling leaves, will be “sleeping”. But the birds won’t and they get hungry and thirsty in the cold weather!

Janet Alcoe