Tom Strowlger
@garden_with_tom
The most festive month of the year is here and us gardeners turn our green fingers to decorating the indoor Christmas tree and hanging our wreath, thick with holly and ivy, on the front door. This time of year makes most of us feel warm and cosy enough to settle into a comfortable chair and hibernate the month away. However, us gardeners can be outside in the fresh air whilst achieving some garden jobs in readiness for the new year.
The garden will be dormant at this time of year and if we are lucky the Dickensian scene of a little snow in the garden will complete the view from our windows. We can use our downtime to plan garden projects and even plant a few more spring bulbs before it’s too late. The garden is currently a blank canvas allowing us to see any gaps that need to be filled with new plants in the coming seasons.
We need to keep the lawn grass clear of autumns fallen leaves by raking or leaf vacuuming them up. This helps to prevent a patchy lawn that would need reseeding in early spring. It’s important to keep the lawn grass exposed to as much winter daylight as possible and to prevent it from being suffocated underneath layers of rotting leaves. There is no better sight than a layer of sparkling frost on a tidy lawn.
One of the most Christmassy sights is the wreath hanging proudly on the front door. We can, of course, buy a ready made real wreath to hang, however we could create our very own home-made wreath, using materials from the garden. We can create a wreath by collecting carefully cut ivy, holly and evergreen shrubs, and placing the fresh cuttings into a circular piece of floral foam.
We can give our gardens a festive feel by hanging some outdoor twinkly lights amongst the trees, shrubs and hedges; it will make the garden a magical place over the Christmas season. The sight of twinkling lights amongst wintry scenes will create an environment of relaxation and cosiness within your very own Christmas card garden setting.
I love the Christmas season as it allows us much needed time to reflect on the gardening year. My favourite thing to do is to simply stand in the garden on Christmas Day to take a moment, often between Christmas lunch courses, and get excited about gardening in the new year. So on that thought I wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Gardening Year.
Please do follow me on Instagram @garden_with_tom for more seasonal gardening advice and tips.
Continue digging and adding compost and mulch to beds and borders
Keep birdfeeders topped up to support your garden birds
Stop ponds, water features and bird baths from freezing over Snow might fall, so be sure to gently shake this off plants, shrubs and hedges
Remember to celebrate your achievements in the garden this year