As the new year commences, gardeners are encouraged to embrace a proactive approach to cultivation, ensuring their outdoor spaces thrive throughout every season. A well-structured gardening calendar proves indispensable, guiding enthusiasts through essential monthly tasks from winter preparations to summer harvests and autumnal planning. This comprehensive guide outlines critical jobs for each period, fostering a vibrant and resilient garden year-round.
The initial months of the year demand foundational maintenance and forward planning. January calls for crucial protective measures, including insulating outdoor taps and undertaking necessary repairs to structures like fences, greenhouses, and sheds. Monitor container plants for dryness, providing water if conditions are windy but not wet. This period is ideal for pruning wisteria, ordering seeds, and sowing early crops under glass in frost-free environments.
February transitions into more active pruning, focusing on large-flowered (Group 3) clematis varieties blooming on current season’s growth. Deciduous hedging requires cutting back before nesting birds establish themselves. Gardeners can plant summer-flowering bulbs like lilies directly into borders, if the ground permits, or start them in pots. Bare-rooted shrubs, including roses and raspberry canes, are also suitable for planting when weather allows.
March marks a significant shift towards spring, necessitating diligent weeding as seedlings emerge; pernicious weeds should be removed by hand. Pot-grown trees, shrubs, and climbers can be planted out, alongside pruning various roses, Buddleia davidii, dogwoods,
