JANUARY

Christmas is over, and New Year's is here. With all the excitement of the festive season, gardening is often left by the wayside. But what better time is there than to start right now to sow some resolutions and make some plans for this coming gardening year.

This is a ideal time to sharpen and repair mowers, secateurs, shredders and other garden implements.

Some seed catalogues are starting to arrive, so it's a good time to settle down in a comfy chair with a cup of tea, and pick and choose something new for this year to grow. Read the descriptions carefully in order to select the right seeds for the right area of your garden. And get your order in early so you won't be disappointed if something is out of stock.

January is a good time to do some serious garden planning. What new projects do you have planned for this year? A water garden maybe or a butterfly garden? or maybe a wildflower meadow or a secret garden? This coming year we plan to re-do one of our fern beds, and also maybe another water feature...we will see.

Take a walk around your garden, what can you see that needs doing? Make a list as you walk around, and when back indoors you can mark what is most important to do and when. Our list is always miles long...gardening is a past-time that is never finished :-)

Check your seed sowing chart from last year...if you did not do one, resolve to do one this year. I know this is very useful, we do one each year, it helps to know which seeds/plants have done well or not, so we can decide what to buy the following year. Mark down date of when seeds were sown, and when pricked out and potted on, and last of all, when the plant flowered. I also make a note of how many seeds sown, and how many made it in the end...useful for the following year, as some seeds are better than others in the germination process.

Make a resolution this year to spend more time in your garden.

Happy New Year, and Happy Gardening.

BULBS, CLIMBERS, SHRUBS and TREES

Bring indoors from the cold frame or cold greenhouse potted bulbs such as hyacinths and narcissi, when the buds are just showing. Provide a cool room at first, and as light a position as possible. Sudden heat will cause the bulbs to shoot too quickly, producing lank, gangly stems and floppy foliage.



Cut back ivy and vigorous creepers such as Parthenocissus quinquefolia and Hydrangea petiolaris to the roof line or below. Loose stems and sections of canopy may be cut out altogether, so winds do not pull more down



The planting of hardy deciduous trees and shrubs is better completed this month before the sap starts to rise.



Beware of walking on the foliage of spring bulbs emerging in borders and turf. Some of the spring-flowering crocuses throw up their needles of foliage as early as December.



If you haven't yet pruned grape vines and wisteria try to do so without delay. Renew the ties for vines and wisteria.

Fruit trees especially, early winter is a good time to make an application of Dormant spray to help control over-wintering insect and disease problems. A combination Lime Sulfur and Oil spray or Copper spray are the ones most often used for winter dormant spraying. Do not spray when the temperatures are below freezing; or when it is raining; or at a time when the wind is blowing. Of course, apply the spray according to label directions.



January is a great month to prune most deciduous trees and shrubs. Fruit, flowering and shade trees can be pruned at this time. Do not prune spring flowering plants, like quince, forsythia or Spirea, etc. as you would be removing their spring flowers. If needed, these plants can be pruned when the plants have finished flowering.



Did you forget to plant your bulbs? Although it's getting late, if you haven't planted your Tulips, Daffodils, Hyacinths or Crocus, take time and get them into the soil right away.



January is an excellent time to plant nursery stock. Trees and shrubs planted now will have ample time to establish root systems before hot weather arrives. There are several winter-blooming shrubs that can add delightful colour and fragrance. When selecting a spot for new shrubs, remember that areas that are sunny now may be in the shade when deciduous trees are in leaf. Be sure to keep newly planted trees and shrubs well watered until they are established.



If you're looking to take out some of your aggressions from being locked up inside this time of year, pruning your trees is a great source of release. Just be sure not to get carried away! Now is a good time to prune trees because they are dormant and deciduous trees have lost most or all of their leaves, making it easier to see what needs to be done. Prune limbs that are too low and get in your way, limbs that hang over the house, and dead branches that could pose a safety problem.



Continue to plant Paperwhite Narcissus for cheerful winter bloom.



FLOWER GARDEN AND ROSES

If you have not done this already...Hybrid tea and floribunda roses can have weak or crossing growth removed, and any long stems likely to cause windrock can be shortened; but do not do the final pruning yet.



Dahlias, gladiolas, and any other tender bulbous plants that you are storing for the winter should be examined for decay or dry rot. Any bad parts should be cut off and disposed of.



VEGETABLE and FRUIT

Dig generous holes and incorporate plenty of well rotted compost or manure before planting out fruit trees and bushes, provided the ground is not frozen or too wet.



Established fruit trees such as apples and pears (but not stone fruits such as plums and peaches) may have dead and diseased wood cut out, as well as misplaced crossing branches. This reduces disease and lets light in to to ripen the fruit.



Erect training wires on walls, but not too close for climbers and fruit trees, using vine eyes, tensioners and strong galvanised wire.



Fruit trees should be planted in good time, since well-established roots will produce the strong growth needed in the early years when shaping and training the tree.



On neutral to acid soils dress with lime those areas of the vegetable garden intended for brassicas (cabbage family) this year. It will help to suppress clubroot disease.



If you like to get the kitchen garden or allotment off to an early start, begin warming and drying the soil now, by placing a row of cloches or a stretch of clear polythene in a bright area, in preparation for new sowings in a few weeks time.



Apply some general granular fertiliser around the base of fruit trees.



Take some time right now to plan this year's vegetable plot so that you know what and how much to order. When it's planting time this spring, you'll be too hurried to think about any different arrangement for your garden.



Plan to add some flowers to your vegetable garden. They not only look beautiful, but some are reputed to have insect repellent properties.



Do you have room for a small fruit tree? There is nothing like a luscious peach, a juicy pear, or tangy plum plucked right from your own tree. So much better than anything you buy in a market. Many fruits are available in dwarf sizes, and some in mini sizes that can be grown in large patio containers. Fruit trees, however, require regular pruning and spraying if you want abundant edible fruit. When ordering trees, it's best to order right from the grower, as they will have the most variety.



LAWN, GREENHOUSE and POND

On a mild day, empty the greenhouse, sweep it out well, wash it down, scrub down timbers and benches, and generally disinfect.



For the sake of wildlife, gently break open a small area of frozen ponds, or float a football in the water to discourage initial freezing.



Keep greenhouse watering cans or tanks full so that it is not icy when watering pot plants. Cold water can be as shocking to delicate houseplants as it is to us.



Beware of walking on lawns when the turf is hard with frost, blackened footsteps will take some time to disappear.



LITTLE EXTRA'S

Ensure you have the seed catalogues you prefer, and place your orders now to be sure of your first choice of varieties.



Clean up garden furniture and apply protective oil to wood surfaces. This is also a good time to clean out pots and seed trays, especially if the weather is too poor to do anything else.



Hang up bird nesting boxes. If you have started feeding the birds, remember to keep putting food out daily, and to provide water if necessary, as they will be depending on your help over the next few weeks.



If you still have your cut Christmas tree around, don't throw it away. You can cut off the branches and use them to cover tender or early flowering plants. Cut boughs from evergreens, like the cut Christmas tree, are natural coverings for plants during cold weather. Then when you are all through with the evergreen boughs they can be recycled through the compost pile or shredded and used for mulching.



Have you checked the garden recently? You'll be amazed at how many weeds have already flowered and are now going to seed. Get rid of those weeds before the seeds have scattered over the garden. Many weeds are capable of producing thousands of seeds, and left unchecked, you'll be fighting those weeds for years to come.



Does your mower need sharpening, is the engine running properly? If you need to have any parts of your power garden implements repaired, this is the time to do it.



I know this isn't the most colorful time of year for the landscape, but if your garden is neat and tidy, the subtle features of the season will show through. Blow or rake up remaining leaves, cut back browned and dormant perennials, and mulch vacant beds to make your garden appear tended.



Inventory last year's seeds. Many are still good, seeds generally last three years with excellent germination. Keep your unused seeds in a cool, dry place, not the tool shed or garage where temperature and humidity can fluctuate dramatically over the year.



When choosing seeds and plants from catalogues It's so tempting, but try to order only what you can handle in terms of numbers of plants, as well as varieties and location. Don't let those beautiful photos tempt you into ordering plants that will not thrive in your garden conditions, and keep your order to what you can reasonably grow.

If the foliage on your new holiday Cyclamen is yellowing, it is probably adjusting to the different climatic conditions in your home. Plants grown in a greenhouse have optimal conditions of temperature, moisture, and light set for them automatically. When the plants move to our homes, the conditions are different, and the plants spend some time adjusting to their new environments. Some leaf drop under these conditions is normal. Cyclamen like cool temperatures, around 60 degrees. Cut back on watering, and keep moist, not wet.



Be careful bringing home any new greenhouse plants. Be sure to have them wrapped completely before taking them out into the winter cold. It is best to place them immediately into a heated car, and take them directly home. Try to minimize the exposure to cold air.



Poinsettias (Euphorbia pulcherrima) often drop some leaves when the flowers begin to fade. This indicates that the plant is going into its natural resting period. Keep out of cold drafts, and do not overwater.



Got a live evergreen tree for the holidays, and not sure what to do with it now? Trees that have been indoors only three to five days will do best adapting to freezing temperatures again; those that have been indoors 10 days or longer will have marginal success. But it's worth a try. Move the tree to an unheated space such as a porch or garage, so that it begins to acclimate to the cold. Keep it away from direct sunlight and do not let it dry out. If you can break through the frozen crust of earth, you can plant it in 2 weeks. If the ground is frozen too deeply, you will have to keep the tree cool and moist until you can plant in the spring.



Treat yourself to a bouquet of fresh flowers. Nothing matches the freshness and fragrance of flowers at this time of year. Cut flowers that have begun to wilt can sometimes be revived by placing the whole stem, flower and all, under water for 15-20 minutes.



That amaryllis bulb (Hippeastrum) you received as a gift is an easy bulb to coax into flower. Many gift bulbs come complete with pot and potting mix. If not included, plant in a pot that is one inch bigger all around than the bulb, setting the bulb only half way into the soil, and use a light potting mix. Water well, and set in a sunny window. Inadequate light will cause the flower stalk to stretch. Keep moist but not wet and wait for the show - amaryllis blooms are spectacular. When the flowers fade, remove them, but do not cut down the stalk until it shrivels. Grow as a houseplant, fertilizing once a month with a flowering houseplant fertilizer. When summer arrives, you can move it outside, even plant it in garden soil. In September, bring it back inside, put in a cool dark place such as the basement, and withhold water to induce dormancy. If new growth does not appear by the second week in November, water the bulb. When new growth appears, move to a sunny location and you should have holiday blooms again. Bulbs that are well cared for and fertilized can produce blooms for years.



On very cold nights, provide houseplants a little extra protection from cold windows using several layers of newspaper as a barrier.



Keep road and sidewalk salt away from plants. Construct a screen, to keep salt spray off plants.



Sketch your garden plans on paper, including what to grow, spacing, arrangement and number of plants needed.







I have removed my guestbook for the moment,
but do write to me via e-mail if you wish,
would love to hear from you.

Enjoy your gardening this month both indoors and outdoors.




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