January is the month to…..
Forget about joining an expensive gym, a few hours of energetic tidying in the garden at this time of year will help you shed those excess pounds. Remember the colder it is the more calories you will burn just trying to stay warm!
Tidying also helps you discover hiding places for slugs and snails during the winter – a surefire way of reducing their numbers come the summer.
If soil is frosty or wet, try to avoid walking over beds as this can easily destroy the soil structure.
Continue planting dormant trees and shrubs in January and check that any newly planted shrubs have not been lifted up by the winter frosts. If so, use your heel to firm them back into the soil again.
In the event of heavy snowfall, carefully brush snow off conifers and evergreen plants to prevent the weight breaking any branches.
Happy new year to all gardeners from the team at eazitools!
Stay clean at the yard
Winter mornings at the yard can be messy, which is not ideal if you’re planning on going straight to work afterwards. Try these top tips to keep yourself clean and free of ‘eau de cheval’.
Keep you hands clean with a pair of gloves
1. Keep a pair of overalls or waterproof trousers at your yard or stable so you can pull on over your clothes
2. Leave your horse’s outdoor rug on overnight (unless it’s soaked). This will help it keep dry ready for the next day
3. Fill haynets for the week at the weekend and invest in a hay bag to move them each day, so that you don’t go to work covered in hay
4. Keep a bucket of water by your stable for easy bucket refilling
5. Invest in a pair of latex gloves to keep fingernails clean
6. Use a dry shampoo to freshen up your hair
Christmas tree survival guide
Fed up with needles on the floor? Read our guide to stop the drop, so your tree will make it to the 12th Night fully-clothed!
We buy eight million Christmas trees every year in this country – enough to fill a forest the size of 800 football pitches. But these days there is a wide range of varieties available to satisfy demand. The non-drop tree is worth the extra money but you can’t beat the smell of the traditional Norway Spruce.
You can make your tree what ever the variety last longer by looking after it’s two key needs: cool temperatures and plenty of water. Bringing it into the house early means it’s more likely to shed needles than if you stay with tradition and only bring it in on the 24th. And while it’s easy to forget to water the tree with all the excitement, if you don’t your pressies will be adorned with more than just wrapping paper on Christmas morning.
Top Tips to Stop the Drop:
1. Buy from a ‘choose-and cut’ plantation. Walk the rows of live trees, choose your tree and it’s felled for you. The British Christmas Tree Growers Association website lists sites near you – christmastree.org.uk
2. Try a pot-grown tree. Ideal if you only bring your tree in for the 12 days of Christmas, and you have somewhere cool to keep it. In January move it to a sheltered area outdoors and water well.
3. Inspect your tree before buying. Gently inspect the needles at the tip of the branches. If they fall off when you brush past them choose another tree.
4. Treat your tree like a cut flower. Saw off the bottom 2cm from the trunk and scar the bark on the lower part of the stem. This removes the sticky sap, which blocks up the stem, letting the tree absorb more water.
5. Thin out crowded branches. Before bringing the tree inside, cut off congested branches. This gives it a more graceful shape and slows the rate of water loss from leaves.
6. Plunge the base in water. Stand your tree in a bucket filled with pebbles and water, or select a stand that holds water. Top up every few days throughout the season.
7. Shake the tree outside. This will knock off loose or dead needles, before the tree comes into the house, which is especially important with the Norway Spruce.
8. Keep it cool. The best spot to put your tree is in a cool room, away from drafts and heat sources. Also turn off your fairy lights at night, as the heat they produce dries out the needles.
December is the month to…
Make a clean sweep for the New Year by clearing away the last remnants of autumn. Move patio pots aside and collect remaining leaves, before thoroughly cleaning the paving. Dirty surfaces can be slippery when wet, so blast away grime using a pressure washer. Repeated use can damage worn surfaces, so use your washer with care. Treating fences, sheds and other timber structures with stains and preservatives will give them the protection they need, to see them through the harsh winter.
Remember to feed & water your garden birds this winter
Other garden jobs to do this month include:
- Protect pots from frost by wrapping them in bubble wrap & moving them to more sheltered areas
- Improve bare border soil by mixing in compost to prevent moss growing and improve drainage
- If snow falls, knock it off conifers and evergreen shrubs to prevent bending and breaking branches
- Store hosepipes inside over winter to prevent them freezing and getting damaged
- Provide water and food for birds this winter and they’ll repay you by controlling plant pests
