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The Winter months are on the way, each year the frosts are appearing later and this has provided more time to finish off those essential end of season tasks. The gardens are slowly being cleaned and prepared for the Winter.
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Now is time for the final drive to clean, plan and look forward to starting off a few seeds for the Winter months.
The apples have now all been harvested and are stored away for eating through the Winter. The Leaves are falling quickly from the trees and the wind and rain together with much cooler nights are here to stay in Wales.
With the cooler nights comes the potential for frost and tender plants are in need of protection from the frost. If you have plants that are susceptible to being damaged, bring them into the greenhouse or into a sheltered spot. You can even purchase fleece covers to help protect them.
As well as protecting the plants, it is important to remember the wildlife that visit your garden. Providing them with plenty of food will help them survive too. Adding a little water to the bird bath will lead to a few friendly visitors to your garden. We have friendly Blackbirds and cheeky Robins, but they all add to the splendour of life out in the garden.
We have grown a handful of sprouts this season and these will be a welcome sight to the Christmas Dinner. The brassicas remain covered. The container grown potatoes and carrots will add to the homegrown plate too. We might even lift a few parsnips.
The final Giant Marrows have been harvested and the seeds have been dried. This year, one of the marrows was chopped up into slices and helped to provide a healthy addition to the local Food Bank parcels that are put together through the generosity of local people, supermarkets and distributed by some amazing community champions.
It’s not too late to sow Green Manures. Green manures come in a number of varieties. For us, we use Winter Field Beans, Hairy Vetch as well as occasionally, Brown Mustard. Brown mustard acts as a bio fumigant and is an organic way to sterilise the soil. The green manures need to be lightly rotovated or raked into the soil. We will inoculate our green manure with Mycorrgiantveg and mix this with molasses. This will help to provide healthier plants and a strong root structure. For those wishing to have a go, Kings Seeds have provided a 20% off code for their website Kings Seeds so why not head over and try some for yourself. Just add 20STIGA at Checkout
1. Provides stability for the soil
2. Can be a nitrogen fixer as well as a biofumigant
3. Provides rich organic matter in the Spring
4. Beats carting a tractor load of manure into the back garden or allotment.
Now is the perfect time to sterilise the pots, tidy up the greenhouse and power hose the outside of the tunnels. Clear out faded tomato and cucumber plants from the greenhouse and add to the compost heap. Remove any diseased plants and burn them where possible. Scrub down greenhouse staging, glazing and the framework with disinfectant. If you are feeling adventurous like us, we’ve got a great tool that is helping us and this is the Stiga HPS 345R Pressure Washer. The STIGA HPS 345 R is a cold water pressure washer. This pressure washer is powered by a 2100 W induction electric motor which operates with a maximum pressure of 145 bar and a flow rate of 450 l/h. The high-pressure hose supplied is 9 metres long, plenty for getting around the average greenhouse. It is a robust piece of equipment, lightweight, easy to use and has the advantage of two wheels.
For a while, I wondered where the hose attachments were, they are conveniently located in a very practical storage compartment. The HPS 345 R is ideal for cleaning tasks on a range of items and surfaces including gardening devices, terraces and steps, bicycles, motorcycles, cars, paths and whatever needs a brighten up.
It’s an impressive piece of kit that has made light work of cleaning over the outside of the Keder Greenhouse. The Greenhouse will definitely now be glistening in the Winter sun
Now is the time to plant a few bulbs in the garden. Last year we planted a huge variety of bulbs from Hyacinths to crocuses to the ever popular Tulip. Planting tulips now will lead to a colourful display in the Spring next year. If you are thinking of having a go for the first time, here’s a few tips for you.
If you want to brighten up your outside space, you can create your own winter basket. Add Ivy, polyanthus, cyclamen with some tete a tete daffodils. These are the mini version.
In mid November, Amy and I, gave up our time to help with some finishing touches to a Garden project at Ty Hafan, the Children’s Hospice of Wales. Greenfingers Charity successfully secured funding from the Big Lottery for a sensory garden. The garden has been designed by RHS Gold Medal Winning Garden Designers, Victoria and Joe Wade
It was a real pleasure to volunteer at one of the UK’s leading paediatric palliative care charities which offers care to children and support for their families, throughout Wales.
This inspiring hospice offers comfort, care and support to life-limited children, young people and their families in the hospice, in the community and in their home so they can make the most of the time they have left together. They allow parents and carers to relax and recharge their batteries and they make sure the needs of brothers and sisters are never forgotten.
The garden has been designed to stimulate the mind and body and a garden that will enable life-limited children to maximise their potential and enjoy the time they have left together as families and friends. Many of the children who use the hospice facility are wheelchair bound and sensory therapy provides much needed stimulation. The garden will provide a tranquil, contemplative space for families as well as providing a stimulating and fun place for the children and their siblings to interact in safety.
It was a day of fun, laughter and reflection and it was a great opportunity to meet the many volunteers who dedicate their time and effort to transform and maintain a garden that is enjoyed by so many. The volunteers have a Go Fund me page and all money raised helps to transform the gardens and provide much needed tools for the volunteers. https://www.gofundme.com/f/ty-hafan-garden-volunteers They’ll definitely need some leaf blowing power when the garden starts to mature
As the leaves continue to fall, make sure you rake them up and store them for a leaf mulch to be incorporated around plants as a soil conditioner in the Spring. The STIGA SAB 700 AE Battery operated Leaf blower is a helpful addition to clearing the paths. It’s a super-powerful machine that makes light work of cleaning up.
With the exceptionally mild period here in the UK, the lawn might need a final cut of the season too.
Top Tips …
Finally, in December, we will talk about our visit to Portugal where we had a great opportunity to witness a Giant Sweet Potato being harvested. December will be a time to stock up on those Christmas presents for Friends and Family, and for your allotments.
Check out Stiga.com/uk for some inspirational surprise gifts for the 2022 season. We’ll pick our favourites to give you a head start in making those decisions in the next blog - coming soon!
All photos credit to Kevin @GiantVeg
