By Sara Milne
Deck the halls with boughs of holly … or any greenery that you feel fits your festive creativity. December is the time of year when the outside comes into the home in the form of natural decorations and when gardeners can put their feet up, just for a few minutes – and perhaps do a bit of tool maintenance.
There’s plenty of pruning to do at this time of year, which means keeping your secateurs in tip top condition so make sure you give them a quick clean and a sharpen. Simply rub the blade with wire wool or fine abrasive paper to remove plant resin. Then oil the blade so it’s ready for sharpening. Sharpen using a circular motion on the sharpened side then turn it over and wipe the back of the blade to remove any debris.
A great use for your winter prunings is to arrange bare or lichen-covered twigs in a tall glass vase and festoon with tea light holders, or simply use lengths of trailing ivy and evergreen foliage such as holly twisted into swags for looping along mantelpieces or winding round banisters. Sprigs of aromatic leaves and herbs – bay, rosemary, sage, thyme and anything else you can lay your hands on – arranged around a large candle in a deep fluted dish makes for a fragrant table centre piece.
In addition to pruning, if there’s one job to be done this month it’s to …ensure you leave some berries on your ivy for birds to enjoy. Ivy berries ripen in late winter and are often not eaten until spring, but they are some of the most nutritious offerings in the garden. They make an excellent, high calorie treat for birds that have survived the winter or who have migrated here to breed.
If you are growing your own fruit and veg then start planning what to grow next year and order new seeds. You will get a wider choice of varieties now and can plan out sowing times for the new growing season. But first, go through all you old seed packets and discard any that are out of date – then list any that you need to buy again. You can also do some research into the best and tastiest varieties, and which ones worked well for you and which didn’t. If you have had disease problems look for resistant varieties to help you get healthier harvests.
Some of the other garden jobs for December suggested by the RHS are:
- Check winter plant protection is still in place
- Insulate outdoor taps
- Protect ponds from freezing over
- Prune apple and pear trees
- Prune acers, birches and vines before Christmas
- Harvest leeks, parsnips, winter cabbage, sprouts and remaining root crops
- Trees and shrubs can still be planted or transplanted
- Take hardwood cuttings
- Keep mice away from stored produce
- Reduce watering of indoor plants
