Gardening Diary - November
November is fast upon us and it's vital to get your garden ready for winter. The cool frost will be fast spreading across your beds and borders. Here’s our advice on how to keep your garden looking in tip top shape and protect your garden ready for a beautiful spring in the next season.
Prepare for the Cold, Damp Conditions
It's time to think about how best to protect your garden from the cold and avoid any damage or disease affecting your plants. Using fleece to cover any tender plants will stop the chill taking over. If possible, consider moving them into a greenhouse or conservatory. Using mulch or bark in your flower beds on top of the soil can also help to protect any plants that aren’t as hardy against cool temperatures.
Raise any pots, tubs or containers off the floor with legs or some type of support. This will stop the soil becoming waterlogged which will cause damage to the roots. Remember to remove saucers from under your pots etc during the winter season so water can’t collect underneath.
Prune, Remove and Clear
Trimming back any evergreens for a final time this year will provide a clean, crisp appearance just in time for the festive season. Remember to give those fruit trees a good pruning regularly too. When pruning your plants, it is important to use the right tool for the job. You don't want secateurs that are too big or pruners that are too delicate. We have an expansive garden tool range, that you can look to for guidance!
Next remove anything that's dead, diseased or damaged to give a nice appearance overall and to stop any further damage coming to any other plants local to the damaged ones. This could be done with a garden tool such as a handy trowel or a larger spade! Whilst here, having a healthy clear up is good practice to keep your garden looking in shape.
Plant, Plant & Plant
Now is the perfect time to plant tulips as the temperature should be cool enough to avoid tulip fire. Plant the bulbs twice the width of the bulb apart. To work out the best depth, plant them approximately three times the height on the bulb. We have a range of bulbs available at our Honley Shop.
It's the last opportunity to plant winter bedding (pop into our Honley Shop to see what we have available) in order for them to thrive properly and give the results you will expect. Consider adding Ruby Red Skimma, Hellebore and Berried Gaultheria for a more festive feel.
The timing to plant hedges such as Hawthorne, Privet & Beech is perfect. Using bare-root whips is the most economical way to revamp your hedges. Pop into our Honley Shop to see what shrubbery we have in store.
Not forgetting indoor flowers, which can add that extra cosy feel during the colder months, planting Amaryllis bulbs this month will allow enough time for them to flower over the winter period. If you happened to plant any Narcissus Paperwhites or Hyacinths then moving these into a bright, well lit area will be perfect to get a full bloom.
Collect Seeds
Finally, harvesting any seeds from your perennials should be done around this time. The method for harvesting the seeds may vary depending on the type of flower so always research this beforehand. Typically, once the head has drooped and the pellets have died back, you cut the head and remove any seeds from inside. Clear away any husks and casings. Place on some paper and allow them to dry out over 7-14 days depending on the type of flower.
Store them in a sealed envelope within an airtight container, keep them in dry, dark and cool conditions. Once spring comes around they will be ready to sow or you could start them off early indoors.
Decorate!!
With the winter stripping away some of the most beautiful flowers and the garden starting to look a little empty, it's the perfect time to decorate. Decorations will add the splash of colour you’re looking for and keep the garden looking lively. With the festive season barreling towards us, it's the perfect excuse! Come see us down at Honley, we have some beautiful decorations available.
We hope this diary has given you enough jobs to keep you busy throughout November! We have a large range of high quality garden products that you will come in handy for all of these gardening jobs. We also have an expansive gardening diary for every month of the year!