Posted: 14 January 2024
Author: Luke
Happy New Year!
With the Winter solstice now behind us, we can look forward to brighter days in the garden. If you’re keen gardeners like ourselves, this is an exciting time to consider what you will grow this coming year.
If we’re lucky, there will be some mild, dry days where we can begin to work on our gardens. With that in mind, here are our gardening tips for January:
Winter Prune Fruit Trees
You can prune apple and pear trees during January, but be careful not to prune any stone fruit trees such as plums or cherries. For a light prune, take out any cross branches and damages that have occurred over winter.
Give Fruit Trees a Winter Wash
Fruit trees will benefit from a Winter wash to combat any pests and diseases that threaten your 2024 crop. Simply dilute a Winter tree wash solution with water, and spray this onto your fruit tree. Winter tree wash is best applied on a calm, dry day.
Plant Trees and Soft Fruit Canes
Providing the ground isn’t frozen, January is still a good time to plant fruit and ornamental trees. When planting trees, add Rootgrow granules to the tree roots, this will promote new root growth in the ground before the Spring. Be sure to support your new tree with a tree stake, helping it to remain planted during any Winter storms.
Keep an Eye Out for Low Temperatures
Out of precaution, it is best to fleece any tender plants such as Cordylines when temperatures fall below 0c. It is also beneficial to fleece Japanese Acers in low temperatures, as they begin to form new buds which easily gets scorched by lower temperatures.
Split Grasses and Perennials
You can divide deciduous ornamental grasses and perennials, turning one plant into two or more. Dig up the grass or perennial clump with a spade, and split them into two or four using a knife or secateurs. Once you have split the clump, you can simply re-plant the smaller clumps into pots to grow on, or into desired areas within your garden.
Introduce Some Winter Colour
If you’re looking for pops of colour before Spring, you can plant Violas, Pansies, Hardy Primroses, Hellebores and Snowdrops.
Purchase Seeds and Seed Potatoes
January is a brilliant time to get organised and purchase the seeds and seed potatoes you’re looking to grow this year. Just remember to buy for the size of plot you have, and not the size of plot that you want (we’ve not successfully figured out how to do that one yet either!).
Other January Jobs: