Christmas time in my garden

Especially at this time of year the only time I only get to do anything in my garden is at the weekend. This is because when I finish work at 4pm it’s nearly dark and by the time I get home then it is completely dark and I can’t do anything outside apart from tucking the chicken in for the night. I do try and do a little bit before I go to work, but I’m very limited on time.

I know that lots of seasonal gardeners say “Well there’s nothing to do in the garden at this time of year.” But as you and I know there is plenty to do, sometimes more so than at any other time of year. This is why I’m baffled as to why our local council stop garden waste collection between the middle of December and don’t resume again until early March! Several trips down the tip to get rid of the garden waste is needed for me. I can’t have a compost heap, I used to, but the rats made a home in it, and I’d rather try and keep them out of my garden than encourage them in. But all the pruning can’t really go in there, and the brassica stalks don’t break down very well, so I bag it up, book a slot, pack it in the car and then take it to the tip and put it in the garden waste area.

So once Christmas was over, and as I’m not going back to work until Tuesday 4th January 2022, it was time to get out in my garden and get things sorted and ready for the beginning of the next season.

The greenhouses were the first thing to get tidied. I’ve got some plug plants in the large greenhouse that I potted up in the Autumn, some were for Christmas gifts for my client’s, but whatever is left is for me. I gave them a little prune and a reshuffle so they’re all now neat and tidy. Watering isn’t too necessary at the moment as it’s not hot, but as long as the compost is damp