WOODY PRUININGS.jpg

How to deal with woody prunings

Path Edges.jpg

PLANT UP PATH EDGES

Winter brassicas.jpg

Sow winter Brassicas in trays

SOW ANNUALS.jpg

SOW ANNUALS

Patio.jpg

Grow fruit and veg on the patio

start tender edibles.jpg

Start tender edibles

prune roses.jpg

Prune Roses

prepare for spring seed sowing.jpg

Prepare for spring seed sowing

plant up a potted bulb display.jpg

Plant up a potted bulb display

FESTIVE FLAIR.jpg

Add some festive flair

GNNH164400.jpg

Bring herbs in from the cold

2) PLANT A TREE - GN116101.jpg

Plant an apple tree

GNNH164446.jpg

Plant up Halloween!

GNNH171313.jpg

Protect alpines from the elements

GN142784.jpg

It’s time to move shrubs

Soft Fruit.jpg

Plant soft fruit bushes

Grasses, perovskia and veronicastrum sparkle in frost

Wisley Surrey design Piet Oudolf borders Alamy.jpg

Create a winter garden wonderland

GNW-6-issues-header.jpg

6 issues for £6.00!

GAF2M7.jpg

Plant tulips for perfect spring pots

Create a winter  foliage display that  will be useful too

Herbs in pots -  small main pic copy.jpg

Plant herbs in winter containers

STIHL-competition.png

Win the latest STIHL hedge trimmer!

website-1600x900-1.jpg

Enjoy your outdoor space

Light.png

Serious Lights can help you to see clearly

growing bulbs.jpg

How To Care For Bulbs Such As Daffodils And Tulips After Flowering

Hedgehog.jpg

How to help hedgehogs

XMAS LEFTOVERS.jpg

Use up the Christmas leftovers!

sow ann main.jpg

Sow annuals direct in borders

alpines.jpg

Plant up some gravel garden alpines

roses care.jpg

Care for your roses

Relax with plants that look good all summer

sunny spots.jpg

Grow summer-long plants in small spaces

Add some spring cheer with a hanging basket

hanging main.jpg

Plant up some cheerful hanging baskets

PUBLISH BASF comp hero 2.jpg

WIN a Pest Protection Bundle

Plants

Flowers Shrubs Trees

Fruit and Vegetables

Advice

Beginners

Garden Maintenance

Garden Design

Some people like to pack up their plots for most of autumn and winter, preferring to tidy up and wait for warmer days before giving their garden a bright makeover.

But if you think about it, that’s four or five long months before you can enjoy your garden again – far too long for us keen gardeners!

Winter gardens can be really rewarding, cosy spaces with lots of bright colours and interest, so here are some key pointers to help your plot prosper now.

There are plenty of plants with a bounty of berries in autumn, and then there are the more useful shrubs and trees that hold onto their fruit all through winter, as if they know their colour is most welcome for much longer into the year.

There are small potted shrubs for the doorstep at garden centres such as gaultheria and skimmia, giving a dash of immediate dazzle, but look a little deeper for some more permanent berrying beauties in a range of colours.

Good solid choices are holly, cotoneaster or fiery orange, yellow and red pyracantha, or go a step further for something special.

Try American native _Ilex verticillata_, a deciduous holly with eye-catching crowds of red berries crammed along each naked stem. Look into buying both male and female plants to be sure of berries. Neon-purple callicarpa defies the season, while selected crab apples – while not strictly berries – keep their fruits all through winter, like the variety ‘Adirondack’.

Have you noticed how spring and summer are full to the brim with blue plants, signifying freshness and vibrancy?

You can defy the winter season and bring a little of this ‘spring’ colour to your garden now, of course, with the addition of bright blue fescues and a couple of blue feature conifers such as juniper ‘Blue Arrow’ and Juniperus squamata.

The sun shining on icy blue stems is a sight to behold. Liberally dot about some early iris and early crocus to see your blue display transfer into late winter.

Your easiest and arguably most enjoyable winter job is to freshen up your pots with a cacophony of colour now – grab some bargains at your local garden centre in the bedding and pot department and create some stunning displays.

Really anything goes – don’t worry too much about lots of room for shrub roots, you can always take them out of the pot in spring and plant them properly elsewhere.

Be sure to add a smattering of crocus, aconite and early iris into the mix for good measure.

You can get some terrific topiary structures already made for you at this time of year, or you can start your own shape now.

Just buy your plants and wire shapes and leave clipping till spring.

Topiary comes alive in winter, defining borders and paths with quirky balls and spirals when a lot of other things have flopped and disappeared.

Box is a clippable classic, while yew has perhaps the most attractive foliage.

What could entice you out in the garden for a wander more than a range of sweet and spicy scents emanating from beautiful early flowers?

Gather a collection of strategically placed shrubs now and get planting – if they don’t flower this year, preparing in advance and getting them settled in now will see them fragrantly flowering either next winter or the one after.

It’ll be worth the wait! Try essential sarcococca, as well as fresh and zesty _Hamamelis mollis_. In late winter chimonanthus has super sweet yellow flowers on bare stems, whose waxy appearance always makes you want to touch them.

Viburnum ‘Dawn’ is a long flowerer, generously emitting a delicious scent sometimes for six months from October.

Drapes of wintry lights woven through trees and hedging make a huge difference to your winter garden, but you can keep it simple instead of spending ages wiring strings through branches, and dreading taking them down again in a couple of months.

Simply wind strings at low level around the bottom of tree trunks, through empty pergolas, or draped over box balls. That way the light strings can be easily removed.

You could always keep them up, though, and enjoy the light display all through the year!

If you don’t like getting out in the garden in the freezing cold to admire all the new additions to pep up your winter garden, let the warmth come to you!

Chimeneas are very reasonable from garden centres, lovely and warm and can be used on nippy summer nights too, of course.

But for big parties outside when all your family can sit on crisp day or night with marshmallows and sing carols, try a fire pit surrounded by seating.

There’s nothing cosier than a winter campfire – you’ll now be able to look on at your winter stems, scented flowers, decorations and patio displays from the comfort of the fireside!

Much of the best winter interest started out with its heyday in summer.

Billows of perennials have their first time in the sun flowering and bulking up our summer borders.

But some of the sturdier ones have a second, often more impressive, spell in the limelight from late autumn onwards.

Take phlomis and honesty, for example, whose rounded seed head punctuation dots turn heads more in winter than in summer.

Also go for miscanthus, molinia and calamagrostis grasses as well as sedums and sea hollies for good measure.

After leaf fall, the garden needn’t be bare and devoid of colour.

It can be a melancholy time once all that vivid leaf colour goes away, particularly this year, when the brightness of our autumn foliage was something special.

Many tree stems, often hidden by spring and summer leaves, get to show off their merits now. Try a vivid collection of lime green cornus ‘Flaviramea’, hot orange ‘Midwinter Fire’ and cherry red ‘Sibirica’.

Snakebark and paperbark maples also make larger trees with beautiful tactile trunks.

Harness those twinkling winter frosts and use them to your advantage.

Get in some evergreens that look simply gorgeous with ice-lined fronds and stems, such as ophiopogon, carex, ferns and semi-evergreen hakonechloa.

Hoar frosts, created on clear, still days, are a wonder of nature, allowing us to admire leaf form and grass stems close up, best shown off on grasses and fronded plants.

The festive season is just around the corner, and we've got a fabulous deal for the gardener in your life. This Christmas, make your loved ones (or yourself!) smile with an affordable subscription to one of our four fantastic magazines - all available for under £20!

Seduced by their dazzling diversity of colour, tulips are often an impulse buy while visiting a garden centre, and being one of the last spring bulbs you can still plant, they’re useful for playing catch-up with springtime displays.

Tulips really come into their own when grown in pots. If you’re not experienced at marrying up the flowering times of different varieties, avoid mixing them together and just plant one variety per pot, then group containers together.

Choose types that are stocky with strong stems, as spring winds can soon dismantle blooms. For windier, more exposed gardens choose dwarf varieties bred from T. kaufmanniana, but those selected here are also sturdy growing types.

It’s best to just keep tulips in pots for a year, as subsequent displays usually diminish in intensity, so either plant them out into the garden once they’re dormant in summer or discard and replant with fresh bulbs next season.

To grow tulips in pots use a well-drained compost, such as a general purpose peat-free type, with added horticultural grit or Perlite to help prevent waterlogging.

Choose a wider tub rather than a narrow pot to enable you to maximise the number of bulbs boosting the floral impact of your display.

Place sufficient compost in the pot to let you to plant bulbs 10-15cm (4-6in) deep, leaving 5cm (2in) from the rim for watering.

Space bulbs 8cm (3in) part, pointed end up, cover with compost, firm and water in. Place in a sheltered spot until the leaves appear in late winter, then move into their final positions.

If you’re unfortunate enough to have bulbs infected with the fungal disease tulip fire, which causes brown-spotted and distorted growth, remove and destroy the whole plant as soon as seen as there’s no treatment available.

**‘Abu Hassan’:** Sultry-toned Triumph tulip with a striking yellow edge. From mid April. H: 45cm (1½ft).

**T. kaufmanniana ‘Stresa’:** Dazzling dwarf tulip producing bi-coloured, goblet blooms from mid-late March. H: 25cm (10in).

**‘Ballerina’:** Startling orange, lily-flowered tulip with the fragrance of tangerines. Mid April-May. H: 60cm (2ft).

**‘Dynasty’:** Pale pink and white blooms of this Triumph variety deepen to rich pink. From mid April. H: 45cm (1½ft).

1.  Plant bulbs upright 8cm (3in) apart and 10-15cm (4-6in) deep.

2.  Place pots to fill gaps in a border or group together on a patio.

3.  Remove and destroy bulbs showing signs of tulip fire disease.

Herbs are very popular in the garden for a variety of reasons.

Many are grown for their culinary uses to add flavour to all types of savoury and sweet dishes through the year.

Others are grown for their medicinal use and lots of people grow a selection to make teas and infusions to help sooth sore throats, headaches, indigestions and other ailments.

And we mustn’t forget that many herbs plants are also very decorative and when in flower attract bees and beneficial insects.

Through the winter months it’s possible to grow a good selection of perennial herbs in pots and containers so you can gather fresh leaves and sprigs as and when you need them.

To grow outside choose hardy varieties and although many of our popular herbs originate from the Mediterranean region, they're very tough.

They don’t seem to mind the cold, but don’t like very wet soils, so always grow in well-drained compost.

At this time of the year you can find young perennial herbs such as rosemary, sage, thyme, winter savoury, curry plant and others for sale that are perfect for planting into larger pots or hanging baskets.

Or grow larger plants as specimens in pots to create a winter display close to the kitchen.

It’s important to have all the right kit for tidying up and pruning trees at this time of year. Sharpened secateurs, shears, pruning saws and sturdy gloves are a must. There are many trees that need to be cut back now, before the new year, or you’ll run the risk of them producing unsightly bleeding from their pruning cuts due to ‘rising’ sap, which, if it keeps happening, may affect the health of the tree.

Trees such as magnolia, birch, maple and hornbeam are dormant now and can be trimmed before their sap levels increase in a few weeks. Anything in the prunus species can be left to spring or summer. A good tip when removing larger tree branches is to make an undercut with a pruning saw, and then finish with an overcut, but be sure not to cut completely flush to the trunk. These large offcuts can’t be composted and are best shredded, made into beneficial woodpiles for wildlife, dried and used on the hearth, or put on a bonfire.

If you have a reliable green waste service and just wish to be rid of all your prunings, dispose of it all in that way. Smaller stems and twigs can be chopped up manually and put on the compost heap or perhaps distributed as a neat, weed suppressing mulch on borders.

We've got a brilliant HSA 60 cordless STIHL hedge trimmer to give away. Garden News has teamed up with STIHL, maker of premium gardening tools, to offer one lucky reader the chance to win the brand new HSA 60 cordless hedge trimmer with battery and charger, along with STIHL's protective glasses and garden gloves, worth over £330 (RRP).

Part of the cordless AK system, which includes a wide range of gardening tools with interchangeable batteries, the STIHL HSA 60 hedge trimmer has a 60cm blade length and boasts powerful cutting performance, helping to make light work of your hedge trimming tasks. The HSA 60 offers a precise cut and perfect finish every time, thanks to the laser-cut, diamond ground cutting teeth with a patented teardrop shape, which grips the branches and trims them neatly. The ergonomic design with a rotating rear handle, that locks into three positions across a 180 degree range, effectively reduces wrist strain when cutting for longer periods and making repeated cutting motions.

What’s more, the new HSA 60 is the first domestic hedge trimmer from STIHL to offer features previously exclusive to professional models, including the innovative STIHL anti-vibration system, which reduces vibration and noise levels for a quieter and more comfortable cutting experience.

The STIHL range includes hedge trimmers, lawnmowers, grass trimmers, chainsaws and more. With German design and  
precision engineering at their core, STIHL’s collection of cordless gardening tools is perfectly balanced, quiet, lightweight and easy to use. With their cutting design and long-lasting batteries, they’re the ideal choice no matter your gardening task.

You can also get expert advice and after-sales support from your local STIHL Approved Dealer. With more than 700  
dealers across Great Britain, they are fully trained to offer servicing and maintenance to the highest standard, so you can be sure your tool will last for years to come. To find out more about STIHL’s range, visit stihl.co.uk.

https://xd.wayin.com/embed/91df0730-db0c-406f-b880-35fbd60da931?mode=responsive&scrolling=no

Prize draw opens 00:00am 12/09/23, closes 11:59pm 12/10/23. Entry is open to residents of GB including IOM or Channel Islands (excludes NI). Winners randomly drawn from all valid entries, notified by Bauer Media Group by email/ letter within 28 days of closing. Prize non-transferable and non-refundable, no purchase required. Andreas Stihl Ltd. reserves the right to substitute any prizes on offer with an alternative of equal value without prior notice due to unavailability. By taking part in this prize draw you agree to be bound by these T&Cs and collection of personal data in accordance with Bauer Media Group’s privacy policy at: https://www.bauerlegal.co.uk/privacy-policy-20230406.

Browse our range of Gardening magazines to help get your garden looking its best this summer. We’re here to help you become a better gardener, make the most of the season and create a beautiful space to entertain, relax and love.

**:a[Garden News Magazine]{href='https://www.greatmagazines.co.uk/garden-news-magazine?utm_source=referral&amp;utm_medium=bws&amp;utm_campaign=summer_gardening&amp;utm_content=Promo_summer-article' target='_blank' rel='noreferrer noopener'}** is the perfect choice for those looking to get expert advice on how to get the most from their blooming borders, veggie patches, and shrubbery.

If you’re looking to take your garden to the next level, **:a[Garden Answers Magazine]{href='https://www.greatmagazines.co.uk/garden-answers-magazine?utm_source=referral&amp;utm_medium=bws&amp;utm_campaign=summer_gardening&amp;utm_content=Promo_summer-article' target='_blank' rel='noreferrer noopener'}** is the perfect match for you. This magazine is packed full of practical advice on everything from plant selection to garden design, so you can create a beautiful and thriving haven.

If you love to be in your garden, visit stunning UK destinations and create delicious seasonal recipes**, :a[Land_Scape_ Magazine]{href='https://www.greatmagazines.co.uk/landscape-magazine?utm_source=referral&amp;utm_medium=bws&amp;utm_campaign=summer_gardening&amp;utm_content=Promo_summer-article' target='_blank' rel='noreferrer noopener'}** is the ideal choice for you.

If you're looking to create a modern and relaxing space you can enjoy into the late summer evenings, then **:a[Modern Gardens Magazine]{href='https://www.greatmagazines.co.uk/modern-gardens-magazine?utm_source=referral&amp;utm_medium=bws&amp;utm_campaign=summer_gardening&amp;utm_content=Promo_summer-article' target='_blank' rel='noreferrer noopener'}** has got you covered. With contemporary garden design and features on the latest trends, you'll be able to create a beautiful and functional outdoor space that's perfect for relaxing and entertaining.

## :a[BROWSE OUR MAGAZINES]{href='https://www.greatmagazines.co.uk/subscriptions/hobby-magazines/gardening-magazines?utm_source=referral&amp;utm_medium=bws&amp;utm_campaign=summer_gardening&amp;utm_content=promo_GNW' target='_blank' rel='noreferrer noopener'} {#h-browse-our-magazines}

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to get your garden looking its best this summer.

**Struggling to see clearly?**  
As we get older and our eyes start to weaken, we compensate by wearing prescription glasses. Their effectiveness however, is dependent on the level and quality of light available. Without the right light, your eyes will try and compensate leading to sore eyes and eye strain. That is why Serious Lights are so highly regarded by professional opticians and recommended to their patients.

**What makes a Serious Light so different?**

Our eyes are designed to work at their best in bright, natural daylight which is why they tend to struggle in artificial light particularly when looking at small print or fine detail. To overcome this problem, a Serious Light uses a unique form of Daylight Wavelength Technology that recreates the same quality of natural light and directs it all on the page where it is needed. Something that no ordinary task light can hope to achieve. The result is even the smallest text is crisp and clear and colour is vividly reproduced.

**How does a Serious Light improve your vision?**

A Serious Light is designed to work with your eyes to maximise your ability to see clearly and focus easily without tiring. From the daylight quality light, adjustable beam, dimming facility and flexible neck, everything about a Serious Light has been made with your comfort in mind.

1000’s of people have already benefited from the Serious Light Ever since it was first invented by founder Alex Pratt, the Serious Light has led the way in both domestic and commercial task lighting. It was originally designed over 35 years ago for Alex’s mum who, although a keen reader, was struggling to see due to the cruel onset of Macular Degeneration. Since then, thanks to Alex’s pioneering research into improving sight by shedding better light, the Serious Light has evolved into the high-performance tool it is today. Used by surgeons and art restorers as well as anyone who loves a good book, the Serious Light is the constant companion of 1000’s of people across the world.

**Why not try it for yourself with a FREE 30 Day Home Trial?**

Driven by the constant desire to build better and better lights, Alex’s latest design uses state-of-the-art purple LEDs as well as the company’s unique form of Daylight Wavelength technology. The result is quite simply stunning. Words simply leap of the page and colour rendition is rich and vibrant. Why not try it or any of the other Serious range of lights in their FREE 30 Day Home Trial. If you are not simply amazed the difference it makes, they will collect the light free of charge and return your money in full.

For more details and to receive £100 off our HD light please :a[click here]{href='https://try.seriousreaders.com/hm272/' } or call 0800 085 1088

Bulbs are the arguably the easiest to plant – give them good drainage, plant them the right way up and the right depth and you’re on to a winner! But it’s the care after they’ve flowered that’s key to their continued success, year on year.

Once daffodils and tulips have finished flowering they are ready to tuck themselves away for another year, so they need some TLC to produce the same sort of displays again. Neglect them now and they’ll be weak, may fail to flower or simply not emerge at all.

Deadheading is essential, to prevent the plant putting energy into seed production. Decide if your plants need lifting and dividing, being moved elsewhere to expand and thrive. Only do this if they’re unhealthily congested and the bloom display was less good this year.

To encourage good flower and foliage growth next year, water and feed with a tomato feed to help them take up moisture and nutrients for six weeks, and leave the foliage to die down. Don’t tie up the leaves as this restricts them – leave them to die down naturally and then cut down when it’s yellow and crispy.

**1) Deadhead** – Cut down old bloom stalks, diverting energy to growth.

**2) Feed** – Feed bulbs after flowering so they can glean nutrients for next year.

**3) Water** – Water bulbs up to six weeks after flowering, so they continue to take up moisture.

**4) Leave foliage** – Leave your bulbs’ leaves for a minimum of six weeks after flowering.

When you subscribe to a **PRINT subscription** you will get:  
**Free 3 months’ worth of digital issues**    
Instant digital access to the current issue  
Discount on our Garden News shop  
Free packets of seeds on selected titles (\*Garden News and Garden Answers)  
**:a[SHOP GARDENING SUBSCRIPTIONS]{href='https://www.greatmagazines.co.uk/gardening-magazine-subscriptions?utm_source=dynamic&amp;utm_medium=bws&amp;utm_content=gnw_page&amp;utm_campaign=gardening_campaign' target='_blank' rel='noreferrer noopener'}**

The ideal border when it’s all planted up is usually a sort of tapering shape, right from the larger shrubs and perennials poking out at the back, cascading down to the front where smaller pathside plants reside. Sometimes we just plant where we can, trying to find something we like for the right place.

But with good planning and consideration of compact height and habit, you can create a lovely lowgrowing display that doesn’t bury the plants behind it, makes your garden seem bigger, softens the hard edges of your path and will creep and clump prettily at ankle level as you walk past. Some of the best plants for the job are rockery or alpine plants, so make your way to the alpine section of your garden centre now and get some good deals. Planted now they’ll establish well.

You could even make these pathedge areas a little more authentic and add pebbles, stones or smallish rocks to complete the look. Rockery plants usually like good sunshine and really well-drained soil, so fork over the soil and add a little grit to each planting hole. Spring’s a great time to enjoy making your little alpine pathside patchwork!

April is a busy month in the vegetable garden with all the sowing and planting of summer crops, but it’s also a time when you need to plan ahead for winter. Without doubt, winter brassicas, such as Brussels sprouts, winter cabbage, savoy, kale and purple sprouting broccoli, are the mainstay of winter vegetables and if you want them on your dinner plate next winter, now’s the time to get started.

The great thing about winter brassicas is they’re hardy and will withstand cold and frosty weather. Many, such as curly and Tuscan kale, can be harvested over several months from autumn until the following spring. Another benefit is they’re very healthy for us and they come at a time when there isn’t much else in the garden, making them an important addition to our diet. To get good strong plants and a decent crop in the winter, all winter brassicas need a long growing season.

The aim is to have fully developed plants by early autumn so that they’ll stand the cold winter weather. A convenient and easy way to raise brassica plants is to start them off in cell trays. This way you can control the numbers of each type and when you plant out in early summer there’s no root disturbance.

Annuals provide a vibrant burst of colour, which may be shortlived but worth every minute. Annuals complete their life cycle in one season, transforming from seed to spectacular flowering plants and back to seed over a few months. Half-hardy annuals need windowsill or greenhouse protection to germinate in March and April’s low temperatures. This nurturing allows seedlings time to grow into established plants.

When temperatures rise transplant them where you want them to grow. As larger plants they stand a better chance against slug and snail attacks, whereas tiny seedlings can be easily munched in one sitting! Alternatively, direct sow hardy annuals. Broadcast sow seed over finely raked soil and seed will germinate where it lands. Once the soil is prepped and seed is sown there’s little to do other than keep seeds moist. Let Mother Nature do the rest and you should have a border of blooms in about 10 weeks or so.

Direct sow cornflowers (Centaurea cyanus), poppies (Papaver rhoeas), love-in-amist (Nigella damascena), corncockle (Agrostemma githago) and Californian poppies (eschscholzia). They’re also perfect for our pollinator friends. Always read seed packet instructions. Some seeds, like nicotiana, need light to germinate. Others, like calendula, can be grown inside or direct sown. Save packets of your free Garden News seed and mix them together to make your own bespoke Garden News annual mix!

Not many of us these days have a lot of room for a thriving veg patch as well as beautiful flower borders. But if you’re really keen on growing a wide range of produce without taking up too much ground space, you can always get growing on the patio.

The amount of veg you can harvest from containers is amazing, and in many cases it’s better for the plants to be grown this way – good quality, crumbly soil with a long root run and all the right watering and feeding is far better sometimes than the hazards of the open ground. There are lots of specific kits out there right now with grow bags, compost mixes and all the vegetable material you need to make it easy for you to make yourself a mini potted allotment, but you can also do it yourself with old potato grow bags and large pots.

As long as you emulate the conditions the plants need in the open ground, and are mindful that containers need more watering and feeding than ground-grown plants, then it’s an easy, fun job for a summer of tasty food!

You may not know if you have hedgehogs in your garden or not, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take steps to help them out just in case. As they’re coming out of hibernation now they’ll need food. Don’t put out bread and milk, it’s dog or cat food that’s best for them (the meat varieties, not fish), and this can be left out with a dish of water somewhere roaming cats can’t find it. You can also buy hedgehog food sold as kibble from garden centres.

Using less garden chemicals is better for the environment and our animal friends. Less reliance on chemical help makes for a biodiverse garden that will keep itself in check for the most part. Slug pellets and other sprays and powders can be extremely poisonous to hedgehogs.

Hedgehogs need free reign to be able to tuck themselves away on the search for insects and invertebrates to eat. If you keep some areas of grass long or leave an area of ivy and wild grasses alone and uncut they can roam happily. If your garden is planted up beautifully, with lots of different types of plants to attract lots of different insects, hedgehogs will help you keep slugs and other pests down too!

It’s the time to turn and add to heaps more readily, but before you do, always have a peek in and around your heap to check no hedgehogs have decided to use yours as a warm home. You wouldn’t want to dig your fork in and damage any of our invaluable garden friends and pest controllers, would you?

Hedgehogs like to travel a surprisingly long way – around two to three kilometres (almost two miles) – at night in search of food, shelter and eventually mates. The only way they can do this is through gaps in garden hedges and fences, which are in shorter supply these days. We can do our bit by leaving some spaces open or sawing little holes in wooden fences.

In a quiet, secluded corner of the garden, why not add a little hedgehog house? It’s the perfect shelter away from predators, pets and other hazards, and mean just-woken-up hogs can take respite safely. It’s also a great place to feed hedgehogs without other animals taking their share. Remember to clean it out every year in mid-spring. Buy one from garden centres or online. Position it with foliage and other camouflage around it.

If you find an injured or unwell hedgehog in the day time, wear gardening gloves to pick it up, holding it under its belly. Put it in a high-sided box with a tea towel as shelter.

Offer it dog or cat food and some fresh water to feed on. It may also need warmth so give it a warm (not boiling) hot water bottle.

Contact the British Hedgehog Preservation Society on 01584 890801 for advice or visit www. britishhedgehogs.org.uk.

It’s a fantastic contrast to sow sun and heat-loving crops in cold, dark January, and it’s a job most gardeners look forward to just into the new year. Chillies, peppers and aubergines can all be started now, as they need longer to get going so they can bask in warmth and sun long enough for fruitful ripening later in summer. Plus, if you like growing hot varieties, they can need longer to develop their heat.

Sow easily and sparingly onto seed compost topped with a light layer of more compost or Vermiculite. Some gardeners simply leave plants on a warmish windowsill and wait until the plants naturally decide they’ve reached optimum continuous warmth for germination later on – at between 21-32C (70-90F). However, many use a heated propagator to speed up the process, set at around 25C (77F), and germination should take about a week to 10 days.

Keep compost on the dry side of moist, and grow on in a greenhouse or windowsill for consistently warm, dry conditions, or in good summers grow them on the patio. Pot up seedlings when easily handled and feed growing plants with a tomato feed from spring.

Take your time pruning roses – with a little thought and care, you’ll get the very best out of them and hopefully pave the way for some superb blooms in a few months’ time. As with all pruning, the main reason is not necessarily to curb growth, though this is a factor. It’s to reinvigorate, refresh and encourage the plant to produce new, and hopefully, healthy growth.

Latest on Garden News

Latest Plants

Latest Advice