Make a trench for next year's runner beans. Gradually fill it with organic waste. Cover in spring before planting or sowing.
Cut canes of blackberries that fruited in September down to soil level, then tie in new canes that grew this year to the vacated spaces.
Lift and divide old rhubarb plants with a sharp spade, then replant each section. Take hardwood cuttings of trees and shrubs. Take lengths of stem, about 12in (30cm) long, removing the soft growth from the tip and making a straight cut just below a bud. Make a slit in the soil in a sheltered position, and then insert the cuttings up to at least half their length to root. In heavy soils fill the base of the slits with grit and sand to improve drainage. For trees like poplars and willows, shoots several feet long can be rooted: these should be supported with canes. Other plants that can be propagated now: Virginia creeper, forsythia, roses, deutzia, privet, buddleia, Viburnum Lonicera, dogwoods and Russian vine.
Greenhouse Garden: -
- Cut back the stems of chrysanthemums when they have finished flowering but keep the compost moist.
- Take root cuttings of plants such as anchusa, Oriental poppy, phlox, gaillardia and perennial verbascum.
- Ventilate greenhouses on warmer days.
- Water plants sparingly in the morning, and avoid wetting foliage. Check fuel levels regularly on paraffin and bottled gas heater.
General advice: -
- Clear snow from branches of trees, particularly evergreens, where the weight can cause the boughs to break.
- Clean out ditches, gulleys and drains to prevent a build-up of surface water.
- Apply preservative to exposed wood.
- Clear ponds of autumn debris, service electrical pumps and stop feeding fish. Building or repairing paths, steps and walls can be carried out, but do not lay concrete during frost.
- Bring all watering equipment, hoses and sprinklers indoors.
- Turn off the mains water supply to outside taps and insulate them.
- Collect fallen leaves from under roses, as these could harbour disease.
- Dig over vacant soil, ready for planting.
- Clean out nesting boxes ready for the new breeding season.
- Move houseplants to windowsills during the day to give them plenty of light.
- Rake up fallen leaves from lawns, paths, patios and borders.
- Use a rake to scatter unsightly worm casts on the lawn.
- Prune deciduous trees to shape now that they are without leaves.
Read about grass diseases and watering grass at the Plants And Flowers website.
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Source: http://www.a1articles.com/article_841023_27.html
Source: http://www.a1articles.com/article_841023_27.html
