May is nearly upon us and another bank holiday weekend is looming. The late spring was a bit of a worry but April’s warmer temperatures have made things really explode into growth.

Marvellous May. It’s our favourite month in the garden and plants are growing so quickly that you can almost see them and hear them. Add to that the special fresh ‘May smell’ in the air, a mixture of heady scents from lilacs, wildflowers and grass clippings and you get something truly spectacular.  Top of our list of jobs to do this month, apart from building a garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, is to go and see a bluebell wood; a real natural wonder of the world. We say this every year but it has to be done. If you are not sure where your nearest one is ask around. Favourites near us are Pyror’s Wood, near Stevenage, Chilham in Kent and Norsey Wood in South Essex.

Other jobs we should be thinking about;

 Plant the last of your potatoes if you haven’t already done so and start to earth up when the growth gets to about 15cm. This will stop greening.

1. Continue to keep an eye out for pests. Check for the red lily beetles, aphids and slugs and dispose of them. Viburnum beetle can be a pain on Viburnum tinus, V.opulus and V.lantana. As can sawfly on Soloman’s Seal. Nip them in the bud before they spread with a good systemic insecticide.
2. With any luck the frost threat is over so start to think about planting out some summer bedding from the end of the month. All the garden centres are awash with fabulous bedding for your pots and hanging baskets. Now is the time to plug any gaps that have appeared in your borders.
3. Keep an eye on the weather forecasts. In the unlikely event of late frosts, be prepared to cover your tender plants with a double layer of horticultural fleece. The weather does seem a bit changeable and the forecast (for our part of Hertfordshire at least) for the first part of May is a bit disappointing, cooler temperatures again until the middle of the month; thought it was a bit good to be true.
4. Pull up or hoe off weeds. Don’t forget on a cool day when the soil is wet some weeds can re-root once hoed off so either remember to put them straight onto the compost heap or hoe on a sunny dry day so that the weeds desiccate and quickly die.
5. You can sow runner beans, squashes, pumpkins and courgettes directly into prepared soil from the end of May.
6. Start mowing your lawn weekly now.
7. Dead head tulips and daffodils and trim back Pulmonarias and Doronicums to encourage new verdant growth once the flowers have gone over. Don’t be tempted to cut down your daffs just yet. You should wait 6 weeks after flowering to make sure all the goodness goes back into the bulb to ensure a good flower display next year.
8. Brussels sprouts can be transplanted from their seed bed into their final positions and spacings at the end of May.
9. Continue to keep your pots and hanging baskets well watered to ensure that they don’t dry out.
10. Prune out any frost affected shoots of evergreen shrubs.
11. Prune back camellias after flowering. They do respond well to quite severe pruning if required.
12. Take softwood cutting of deciduous shrubs such as Forsythia, Hydrangea, Fuchsia, Spiraea and Philadelphus. (See propagation section for advice on how to do it).
13. Towards the end of the month think about introducing certain houseplants into the garden such as Christmas cacti, potted azaleas and orchids. All will enjoy a summer holiday but take them out gradually and don’t put them into direct sunlight straight away or they will scorch. In fact, the Victorians used to plant up flower beds for the summer using rubber plants, palms and mother-in-laws tongue.
14. Support your perennials now so that they don’t flop later on.
15. Remember to take time to sit and enjoy your garden. Get a glass of wine or a gin and tonic and really take in the beauty of the plants around you. After all that’s why we do it!
16. COME AND SEE US AT CHELSEA !!  What will we leave? The NSPCC Garden of Magical Childhood – Artisan Garden SEW5

WE absolutely love April, and after the coldest March for 50 years, it’s a real welcome arrival.  Spring has finally arrived,  blue sky is slowly starting to appear   and believe it or not it is getting warmer. The daffodils are still looking glorious, the blackthorn blossom is out in the hedgerows, herbaceous perennials are starting to push through in the borders and the grass is starting to grow again. This is a wonderful, invigorating time of year for a gardener and now that the clocks have changed ( Easter Sunday) we also get an extra hour in the garden!  Lots to do this month;

1. Spring Planting. Plant evergreen trees and shrubs now that the soil is starting to warm up. It’s a good time to plant other flowering plants such as roses, climbers and herbaceous perennials.
2. If you haven’t pruned your roses by now, you can just about still do it, if you get a move on now. Don’t leave it any longer. It’s also a good idea to feed them with a granular rose fertiliser.
3. Hard prune the forsythia after flowering.
4. Start hoeing to keep weeds down between your plants. Take care not to cut the tops off hostas, lilies and other plants that have tender shoots.
5. Keep a look out for pests, especially slugs and snails if the weather turns wet and take speedy action. If you don’t want to use sprays then pick off as many as you can. Try using the organic slug pellet based on ferric phosphate. Keep an eye out for the dreaded lily beetle as the lilies start to push through. We are hoping that the cold weather has reduced their numbers.
6. Continue sowing selected vegetables outside such as carrots, radishes, beetroot, cabbages, Brussels sprouts and lettuce. Brussels and cabbages do better if they are sown in a seed bed first then transplanted into their final positions in May / June.
7. Plant first & second early potatoes (such as Maris Peer, International Kidney & Charlotte) from early to mid April (ready July/August) and main crop towards the end of the month (ready September/October). First early potatoes are usually planted late March but it doesn’t matter if they run into April
8. Sow pumpkins, squashes and tomatoes inside with protection. When it has warmed up in May and frost risk has gone then they can be planted outside.
9. Don’t be tempted to fill in the gaps in your borders just yet; some plants are still coming through.
10. Start your spring lawn treatments to keep them in tiptop condition. Continue to aerate, scarify, feed and weed. There are a number of all-in-one weed and feed granules available at your local DIY store or garden centre and it is worth using them.
11. Normally it’s a  good time to start turfing or seeding new lawns but with hosepipe bans in force in much of the country leave it until the autumn.
12. If you have winter bedding such as pansies continue to deadhead them to extend their flowering season, and keep containers and hanging baskets well watered. They should start to look their best from this month onwards.
13. Take basal root cuttings from things like delphiniums, dahlias, phlox and chrysanthemums. These are created from the little tiny shoots coming from the base of last years old stems. Try to remove from as near as possible to the main root and before they are 2 or 3 inches tall and root in nice sandy, gritty compost.
14. Take soft wood cuttings from fuchsias and geraniums.
15. Hoe in slow release fertiliser between your plants to get them going.
16. If you want dramatic leaves on some shrubs and are happy not to get the  flowers you can cut back hard on Catalpas, Acer negundo and Pawlonias
17. Carefully remove dead and damaged fronds from ferns. Take care not to damage the new, unfurling fronds in the crown of the plant as they are very brittle.
18. Be patient with perennials that may look as though they have been killed by the frost such as salvias and verbenas. There is a  good chance that they may re-shoot from below ground level.
19. Start watering your house plants regularly. Pop them in the bath and give them a blast with the shower head to get rid of dust and cobwebs. You will find that this will invigorate them and help them to photosynthesise properly.
20. It’s a good time to start planting summer flowering bulbs such as gladiolis, fresias, ixias, sparaxis and lilies.

Well, here we are at the start of spring, but looking out of the window today you wouldn’t think so. It’s cold and it’s snowing. Don’t despair soon the soil will start to dry out and then we will finally be able to get onto the borders to do some gardening. Herbaceous plants are starting to emerge, some plants such as the Hepaticas (below) are already flowering their socks off and the daffodils are bringing some much needed sunshine into our gardens.

1. Prune your roses. Now’s the time to prune your rose bushes if you haven’t already done so. Don’t get too stressed about the technical side. What you should do is prune back to an outward facing bud, taking the bush down to about half to a third of its height. You should also prune away any dead or diseased stems and burn them and prune away any stems that cross each other. You are aiming for a good open bush. This isn’t something to worry about too much – I know of at least one rose grower who does his rose pruning with a hedge trimmer and it doesn’t affect the flowering one bit.
2. Tidy up frost and snow damaged plants. Prune out the dead bits from tender shrubs and climbers such as choisyas and solanums. Cut out bent leaves from phormiums and take out the dead brown leaves. Ceanothus have been particularly hit badly with the cold; be patient although they are looking brown now, they should come back.
3. Prune buddleias and dogwoods. Ideal time  for cutting back Buddleia davidii to encourage flowering. Some plants that have got out of hand may need to have quite a bit taken off. Cut back the colourful stemmed dogwoods such as the red Cornus Alba. If you cut the stems back almost to the ground (15cm) it will ensure a new lot of colourful stems for next winter.
4. Trim your grasses. We always give our ornamental grasses a haircut this time of year, ready for the new verdant growth to push through. Don’t cut too low only down to about 15cm. Good time for trimming back pampas grasses; we take a hedge trimmer to it or if you are in an appropriate location set light to it to take it to take off the dead bits and encourage new growth.
5. Lift and shift your perennials. Good time for dividing and moving herbaceous perennials such as Phlox, Asters, Rudbeckia and Alchemila
6. If you want to transplant Snowdrops, a good time to do this is after they have flowered when they are still ‘in the green’.
7. Get out and dig over your bare soil now that the conditions are right if you haven’t already done so. For most vegetables you want to aim for a consistancy of coarse breadcrumbs before you sow.
8. Start to sow some veg seed outside such as lettuce, raddish and cabbage
9. Onion sets can be planted out now.
10. Chitting Potatoes – To get your potatoes growing away better, you should chit them to encourage sprouting. To do this place in a tray or egg box and keep somewhere bright and cool for a couple of weeks. Put them ‘rose-end’ up (The end with the dormant eyes upwards). Earlies you can think about planting out at the end of the month
11. Get the mower out and make sure it works. You may also want to think about a spring lawn treatment for next month.
12. Plant lily bulbs ready for the summer.

According to a number of weather watchers, it looks as though February is going to get a bit iffy. The biting wind from the east, good for neither man nor beast, is going to make temperatures tumble and there’s a good chance of snow; winter’s not yet over. On the plus side, the first snowdrops are out and we can now work until 5!

Hellebore 'Cinnamon Snow'

As far as gardening jobs for February, there’s not an awful lot to do that won’t wait until March so unless we get some good sunny days and you want to get stuck in, keep warm and stay inside.

 Remember to feed the birds. Nuts and fat are better than bread. Putting out bread just encourages rats. Remember to clean your feeders regularly to stop any build up of bacteria.

1. Give your roses a boost with a specialist rose feed to encourage more flowers and get some manure on the beds
2. Cut back perennials to keep them tidy
3. If the weather does take a turn for the worst remember to fleece any tender plants or bring them inside if you can.
4. Continue planting bare-rooted roses, trees, shrubs and hedging plants.
5. Start thinking about which varieties of potato you are going to grow this year. You can soon start chitting them (encouraging them to grow shoots). Put them in a warm light spot inside and they will soon sprout allowing them a better start when you do plant them outside.
6. Service your petrol lawn mowers and check your other tools are all in working order.
7. General hygiene – Clean out your greenhouse (if you are not using it) and give any pots or seed trays a good clean and disinfect if you are going you reuse them
8. Get ahead of yourself now by digging over any bare soil and breaking-up any clods to give you a fine crumbly seed bed in preparation for sowing.
9. It’s still too early to sow most things outside but you could have a go at planting a few radishes, leeks or parsnips if you are really keen. Inside, you can start sowing a few tomatoes on your window sills to get an early start.
10. Get some instant colour into your borders with primroses or hellebores. Hellebore ‘Cinnamon Snow’ is a real beauty!

Well another January, but thankfully not like last year. The ridiculous amount of rain that we’ve had has definitely been a bit of an issue but at least it’s still reasonably mild.  The days are starting to draw out slowly and its getting a touch warmer. There are also some signs of life in the borders as the spring bulbs are starting to push through.  Here are a few jobs to get on with if you get a nice dry day.

 1.  Prune Wisterias. The middle of winter is the ideal time to give wisterias their main prune (they are also lightly pruned in August). All you need to do is to shorten the lateral spurs (those whippy shoots growing from the main plant) to 2 buds away from where they meet the main stem. This will encourage a good display of flowers in May.

Winter pruning

 2. Prune Apple and Pear Trees : The main aims of pruning are to open up the tree to let in more light, remove dead and diseased branches and generally increase vigour so that the tree produces more fruiting spurs and then consequently fruits better for you. Start by cutting back any dead or diseased branches. Then cut back any crossing branches, low growing branches or any that are growing downwards. The aim is to keep the tree open enough for a pigeon to be able to fly through it without its wings touching the branches.   All this general thinning and tidying will stimulate new growth and regeneration of the tree.

 3. Keep the surface of ponds ice free by placing footballs on the surface or melting holes with the bottom of a pan containing hot water.

 4. Keep feeding the birds and make sure delicate plants have a thick coat of fleece around them.

 5. Continue to remove leaves and debris from lawns but avoiding walking on them when they’re frozen or saturated and when spreading salt on garden paths be sure to avoid any adjoining grass, the salt will kill it outright!

 6. If and when you can, scrub decking and patio areas with a stiff brush to remove slime and prevent them from being slippery; use a propriety patio cleaner or a weak bleach solution.

 7. Make sure greenhouse heaters are set at the right level and working correctly to prevent your most precious plants from freezing to death and turning to mush. Some areas have had power cuts so it’s worth checking that they’re functioning correctly. Use bubble wrap on the inside of the glass for extra insulation and keep your plants on the dry side, many plants will cope with cold and dry but cold and wet spells death for many.

 8. On beds and borders if the weather does allow then continue to dig in organic material, but avoid doing this if the ground is wet and heavy, you’ll cause more harm than good as it will compact the soil forcing out the air and making it more prone to waterlogging.

 9. If you don’t fancy going out into the garden then now is the time to peruse those seed and plant catalogues and consider what you’d love to grow this year, perhaps a brand new introduction, a challenging delicate plant, new varieties of potato or perhaps flowers to cut for the house.

 10. Keep an eye on your house plants this time of year, provide maximum light, keep them on the dry side, except for azaleas that love to sit in water, keep them away from cold draughts and hot radiators and make sure the more delicate ones aren’t trapped in a pool of cold air behind curtains during the night. Give the leaves a good dust as well as this will improve photosynthesis.

Glad November is over, its always one of the most depressing months of  year. It can be summed up in 5 words; LEAVES,COLD, WET, DARK, LEAVES.  Roll on December and the shortest day!

One of our favourite horticultural jobs at this time of year must be choosing our Christmas tree. Real trees don’t suit everyone but for the people who do want one, you generally have a choice of Spruces (such as the traditional Norway Spruce) or Firs (such as the Nordman Fir or Douglas Fir). They each have their own pros and cons; the spruces tend to be cheaper but the firs don’t drop their needles so readily. What ever you go for, just remember to treat the tree like a cut flower, cut the bottom couple of inches off and make sure it has plenty of water. Don’t put it next to a radiator and keep it outside in a bucket of water until you are ready to bring it in.

 Clear the remainder of the leaves, most would have come down already. Last to come down are normally weeping willow leaves followed by the alders.

1. As with last month make sure your tender plants are protected, either fleeced or brought indoors.
2. You shouldn’t need to do any hoeing but if you do get the urge be careful not to hoe off any emerging bulbs. It’s easily done, I did it twice last week !
3. Continue planting deciduous trees and shrubs. It’s a good time for planting both fruit trees and fruit bushes. You can still just about get away with planting any bulbs if you didn’t get time last month.
4. This time of year is traditionally the best time to prune your apples and pears. Cut off any dead or diseased branches and any crossing branches to keep an open shape. With apple trees I was always told that they should be nice and open so that a pigeon could fly right throw the tree without knocking into any branches. Remember don’t prune cherries, plums and peaches until the spring/ early summer.
5. Don’t be tempted to feed your plants at this time of year. Most are not actively growing so they don’t need it. Any soft growth that may be promoted could get hammered by the cooler temperatures.
6. Give your compost heap a good stir to ensure that it gets mixed thoroughly.
7. Caring for Poinsettias. If you get a poinsettia for Christmas, make sure you keep it well lit, away from draughts and don’t let the temperatures fall below 13 degrees. Don’t over water and let the compost dry out between waterings. To get it to colour up again for next Christmas, cut the stems back to about 10cm in the early spring and then  re-pot and water in May. At the start of October cover the plant from the early evening so that it gets 14 hours of darkness. Do this for 8 weeks and then the bracts should turn red. Remember, the key is 14 hours of darkness for 8 weeks.
8. Clear away any dead annuals, runner beans, bedding, sweet peas etc.

Dig over vacant areas; the winter frosts should help to break down the soil ready for working in the spring

Winter in the garden need not be dull and depressing if you choose your plants carefully. It can be a really spectacular time of year with vivid stem colour and bright scented flowers.

In this winter border plan we have used a group three of our favourite shrubs for providing stem colour at this time of year. Cornus alba ‘Sibirica’, a type of dogwood, is a great deciduous shrub which has the most striking red stems, guaranteed to brighten up any dull winter day. They are very robust shrubs and are happy in most soils and can tolerate a degree of shade. Height up to 5-6ft.  We have used them at the back of the border to provide a contrast with the plants in front. 

 At each side of the witch hazel we have chosen groups of Sarcococca hookeriana. These are really useful evergreen shrubs, also known as Christmas Box., mainly planted for their incredible scented white flowers, which are strong and sweet. They are also ideal for shade.

 In front of the witch hazel we have included two groups of three Bergenias commonly known as elephant’s ears. These are evergreen perennials with glossy green leaves with stems of white or pink flowers in late winter. The variety we have chosen is ‘Bressingham White’, but any variety will do. Again they are very reliable and robust and will be happy in most soils and most situations. What we call ‘good dooers’.

 At the front of the border we have planted clumps of snowdrops (Galanthus nivale) which will flower in the late winter and contrast beautifully with the plants around them. You could also augment the border with other bulbs such as aconites, scillas or crocus.

 This fabulous display of winter interest will certainly lift your spirits as winter draws in.

 With any planting scheme we always try to plant in groups of even number; in ones, threes and fives, unless you are planting in pairs either side of a door or path. This always looks better on the eye. It is always better to have height at the back sloping down to low level planting at the front of the border.

We are right into autumn now and the leaves are coming down thick and fast, aided by the wind and cooler temperatures. There’s still plenty of colour in the garden with a dazzling array of colourful berries shining out like jewells.

Scarlet red berries of Cotoneaster horizontalis

There’s not much sign of the sun at the moment but when it does come out it’s glorious. Who knows what’s round the corner; last year we had snow by the end of the month.

1. Keep on top of the leaves. It’s a laborious job but it is worth while. Keep raking them up, especially if they are on your grass or on your patio and paths; wet leaves on hard surfaces can be dangerous, but don’t worry too much on your herbaceous borders as they will eventually rot down and improve the soil (Unless they are trapped around plants as they can be a hiding place for slugs).Diseased leaves such as black spot infected rose leaves should be disposed of by burning to prevent carry over of infection. The rest stick on the compost heap.
2. Keep cutting back herbaceous perennials once they go over and turn yellow.
3. Keep an eye on the weather forecasts. If frost is predicted, bring in any tender plants or wrap them in several layers of fleece.
4. Take hardwood cuttings (shrubs and trees such as Forsythia, Buddleia and Photinia) and root cuttings (Oriental poppies, Chaenomoles, Acanthus, Crambe, Dicentra, Eryngium). See Propagation section for instructions on how to do it.
5. Not too late to plant bulbs. November is ideal for planting tulips.
6. Depending on where you are in the country, you may need to lift your dahlias and store them over winter. If you are in a mild area just leave them in and mulch the crown to protect it. If not, cut the stem right down to just above ground level, dig up the tuber and wash off the soil. Let it dry and then store in sand, newspaper or dry compost. Keep them cool and dry but frost free.
7. Normally, we would expect to put the lawn mower away at this time of year, but if it continues to stay mild you might get another grass cut before Christmas especially if it’s dry. Don’t forget grass can still grow even at 5 degrees. If you are finished with it, give it a good clean before you put it away.
8. If you are really bored and looking for something to do, you can always clean and oil your hand tools such as spades, hoes and forks – not my favourite job I must say.  
9. Take a few moments to do a bit of garden planning. Look back at your gardening successes and gardening failures and start to plan next year’s projects. There may be beds to dig over or new areas to plant.
10. In the veg plot, clear away any dead or dying plants such as tomatoes and runner beans, dig over any bare areas and mulch with manure.

 Autumn can be a truly stunning time of year as the leaves start to turn the most amazing colours from fiery reds to vivid yellows.

Stunning October colour from this ornamental cherry

Far from being the end of the gardening year,  October and November  traditionally mark the start of the planting season, especially with bare-root trees and shrubs, and there’s plenty of jobs to be getting on with in the garden.

 1. Now is a good time to start thinking about giving your lawns some TLC with an autumn lawn treatment. Rake out any thatch of dead brown grass and improve drainage by spiking or aerating. On heavy soils brush sand into the holes to improve drainage and on light sandy soils brush in compost or top soil to improve the moisture retention. If the weather permits you can keep mowing for a few weeks to keep the lawns sharp.

 2. Try to keep on top of the leaves if you can, especially if they are on the lawn as they can turn the grass yellow if left to rot. Don’t get too worried about leaves on your flower beds as these will eventually rot down or you can dig them in giving extra nutrients. Diseased leaves should be burnt to stop any infection from carrying over to next year.

 3. We try to give roses a light autumn prune, just to put them to bed before Christmas. If you prune down by a third it will stop wind rock which can reduce the rigour of the plant. Rake up and burn old rose leaves, especially if infected with black spot.

 4. Tidy up Buddleias now that they have finished flowering. Cut back by a third, just above a pair of leaves. You can cut them back hard in March.

 5. Keep lifting and dividing perennials such as Michaelmas Daisies, Alchemila, Campanula and Phlox if required.

 6. As deciduous trees are now becoming dormant you can start planting new fruit trees and ornamentals. Peaches and nectarines always do better if planted in the early autumn when the soil is still reasonably warm, apples and pears aren’t so fussy.

 7. The summer bedding is starting to look a bit tatty so pull it up and get rid of it. Think about planting autumn / winter bedding such as Violas and pansies, Bellis, Cyclamen and wall flowers. Pansies and Violas always do better if planted early autumn and I always prefer Violas to pansies as they flower better, look neater and don’t need so much dead heading. A lot of the cyclamen sold in garden centres and DIY stores aren’t as hardy as we think and soon turn to mush after a couple of frosts, so don’t expect too much from them if it turns cold.

 8. Raise your pots up with pot feet to stop them sitting in water over the winter and give some of your more tender plants a bit of protection. If we get some harsh frosts remember that you need to properly fleece your plants; one layer of fleece is not enough you need several layers and cover the pot itself as well.

 9. Keep planting spring bulbs. Try some of the species tulips for a bit of interest such as Tulipa praestans ‘Fusillier’ (red), Tulipa clusiana  ‘Sheila’ (Orange / yellow) although the hybrids varieties always perform well. I’m trying ‘China Pink’ for the first time.

 10. In the veg garden, harvest your pumpkins and squashes. Once cut you will help storage if you leave them in the sun for a couple of days to let the skins  harden before storing somewhere cool, dark and dry.

 If your tomatoes are still refusing to turn red, pick them and bring them inside. Place them somewhere warm, and try sticking a banana in with them; the natural ethylene gas that they produce should help them to ripen.

Well September is here and so is autumn. Ughh! The leaves on the trees have already starting to change colour and the evenings are starting to draw in. But it’s not all gloom and doom. There’s still a lot of interest in the garden.  

Stunning September colour with heleniums and Verbena bonariensis

 Jobs for September 2012

1. If you are thinking about re-turfing your garden or re-seeding your lawn, now is a good time to do it as the soil is still reasonably warm and there tends to be more rainfall. 

2. Continue to watch out for diseases. The recent humid weather has meant that certain fungal diseases such as black spot on roses and potato and tomato blight are very prevalent. Pick off infected leaves as soon as you see them, try to increase ventilation, avoid watering at night and try to only water the soil and not the foliage.

 3. Make some notes on the position of your herbaceous perennials in your borders. Now is a good time to think about where to move them to later on in the autumn if you are not happy with their current position or height in the border etc. It is always a good idea to mark them with a stick as they die down so that you don’t dig them up by accident in the spring.

 4. Lift and shift. Towards the end of the month you can lift those perennials, divide them and then move them somewhere else.

 5. Start thinking about buying and planting spring bulbs. Daffodills are pest planted towards the end of the month and tulips are best planted in November.

 6. Cut summer fruiting raspberry canes down to the ground once they have finished fruiting if you didn’t do so last month. The new canes which will still be green will provide fruit for next year so leave these and tie in for next year. Pick autumn flowering raspberries.

 7. Continue to collect seed from perennials and annuals once the seed pods have dried out to either give to friends or re-sow yourself.

 8. Don’t be tempted to forget about your hanging baskets and pots; keep watering, feeding and deadheading to prolong flowering. Most will flower quite happily until the first frosts. If they are looking a bit sad replant with winter pansies.

Refresh your baskets and tubs with winter pansies

9. Dead head the lavender if you haven’t already done so. Trim the flower stalks to an inch into the new growth. Garden shears are best for this.

 10. Continue to harvest your veg, potatoes, sweetcorn, runner beans and tomatoes. If, god forbid, there are any light frosts at the end of the month, cover your outdoor tomatoes with fleece for protection and don’t forget to keep feeding them with tomato feed. Don’t forget keep picking runner beans, ideally when they are young and not stringy, to keep encouraging continued cropping.