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Here is our monthly round-up of news, tips and ideas to make the most of your garden in winter!
The festive season is just around the corner, but Earnshaws are far from hibernation. Christmas trees will be available from 29th November, our animal and bird care ranges are fully stocked, shovels, de-icers and rock salt are available, and our firewood and fuels are ready for collection or delivery!
It’s important to keep your garden maintained during the winter, so here are some important garden jobs for this month!
• Clear faded perennials – This job should be left until as late as possible in December, but now is a great time for removing faded perennials. If you can, leave the debris in a pile in a quiet part of your garden as a place for insects to stay.
• Winter pruning – While many plants benefit from pruning, it’s important to do so at the right time of year. During December, much of the garden is dormant, and roses, deciduous shrubs, grapevines, wisteria, fruit bushes, and deciduous ornamental trees all benefit from being cut back and trained. Be sure to use a pair of sharp secatuers.
• Plant bulbs – Plant any remaining spring bulbs in pots and gaps in borders, ensuring the holes are three times as deep as the bulbs. Tulips, daffodils and grape hyacinths can all be planted now.
• Create beautiful hanging baskets – Pansies, trailing ivy, and primroses can all be planting into hanging baskets to create colourful displays around your garden.
• Add netting where necessary – Protect your winter crops, such as kale, from birds by covering them with netting.
• Keep lawns leaf-free – Grass needs as much light as possible at this time of year, as well as good air circulation. Therefore, regularly raking lawns to remove leaves will keep the grass in much better condition.
• Plant trees and shrubs – October to April is the best time for planting trees and shrubs. Dig a hole that is no deeper than the roots but three times the diameter. Soak bare root trees or shrubs for about 30 minutes before planting.
• Provide an unfrozen water source for wildlife – Throughout the winter months it can be difficult for wildlife to find water that hasn’t been impacted by the freezing temperatures. Keep checking your bird baths, ponds, and other water sources. Discover our bird care range here.
Visit any of our centres to pick up essential gardening tools!
During the winter period, our North Lincolnshire centre will now be closing half an hour earlier, at 4pm.
Until next spring, our Brigg opening hours have changed to the following:
Weekdays
8:00am – 4:00pm
Saturday
8:30am – 4:00pm
Sunday
CLOSED
• Plant garlic – Plant garlic now for it to be ready in July. Ideally, select a UK variety that is suited to our climate, such as ‘Solent Wight’. Split the garlic bulbs into cloves, and plant in a sunny area with free-draining soil, spacing them 20cm apart and planting each clove 10cm deep.
• Plant cabbages indoors – Sow cabbage seeds in modular trays, before planting out in spring, choosing a sunny spot.
• Plant rhubarb – Find a sunny spot with good drainage to plant rhubarb outside now. Rhubarb will rot if kept in an area that is regularly sodden.
• Plant onions indoors – Sow onions indoor until February, before planting out. Don’t water after midsummer as this will hinder their ability to mature and be stored well.
• Plant broad beans – Sow indoors until March, then plant outside in free-draining soil, with plenty of garden compost or manure dug in.
For most of the year, we focus on your outdoor space – but during the Christmas season we’re all about bringing the greenery indoors!
Make one of our locally grown, freshly cut, long lasting trees the star of the show this Christmas – all netted for easy transport! Take a look at our helpful infographic to decide whether a Nordmann Fir or Norway Spruce is the tree for you.
Our Midgley centre will also have a number of traditional wreaths and gifts for gardeners for sale, and the Little Acorn will be serving up some delicious seasonal treats!
Be sure to measure the space that you’re planning to put your tree before you visit us. Once you have found the perfect tree that fits your home, you can ensure it survives for longer with these top tips:
• Preparation is key – Your tree will last longer with more water, so it is advisable to saw 5cm off the base and leave your tree outside in a bucket of water overnight.
• What to do once inside – Use a stand that holds water and keep it topped up throughout Christmas. Make sure to keep your tree away from direct heat, namely radiators and open fires.
• After Christmas – You can drop your tree off at your local recycling centre. Alternatively, turn your tree into useful mulch: chop smaller branches into pieces and add to your compost heap to decompose. The final option is to the cut the tree up and create a log pile in your garden for wildlife, which will eventually rot down.
Many animals go into hibernation over winter, even insects!
To make sure you don’t disturb anyone’s slumber, avoid disrupting your compost heaps or leaf piles.
Of course, some wildlife will still be out and about searching for food during the day – leave out suet treats, seeds, nuts and fresh water for birds, to help keep them warm and fed throughout the colder months.
Slightly milder regions might still get visited by hedgehogs, so keep leaving food out at night until it stops being taken.
To help the wildlife in your garden, why not take a look at our birdcare and wildlife product range?
• Harvest broccoli – Cut the main heads of broccoli now, to allow the plant to produce smaller heads. Using a sharp pair of secatuers will stimulate the production of sideshoots, allowing another month or so worth of harvest. Remove damaged leaves to improve air circulation.
• Harvest mustard greens – Many varieties of mustard greens will be ready to harvest as baby greens after 20-30 days. However, to harvest mature mustard greens, pull off the outermost leaves without damaging the growing point, and enjoy many more weeks of harvest.
• Harvest cabbages – Cabbages can be harvested as well as sown this month. Generally taking between 4 and 6 months to reach maturity, harvest winter cabbages once they have formed a firm head, cutting the stem just above ground level.
At Earnshaws, we know our timber and have been cutting firewood since 1860, so you can trust us to help you keep warm over the festive period – both our centres stock ready to burn, kiln-dried firewood logs and coals!
Stock up now and take advantage of our three hot offers on firewood – available from Brigg and Midgley. Call now to arrange your delivery*!
Our centres also stock everything from kindling and firelighters to a fantastic range of stylish contemporary and traditional fireside accessories, including fireguards, pokers, shovels, log baskets and coal scuttles – many make perfect gifts for yourself or a loved one!
Discover our full firewood range here.
Click here to view our helpful guide on choosing the right firewood logs for you.
*to our normal delivery zones
Roses are extremely resilient plants, but they are not totally immune to cold snaps. Here’s how you can prepare your roses to ensure they survive over winter.
• Deadheading – Ensure any dead or diseased leaves are removed from your roses, use secateurs to prevent the risk of making any tears in the stem.
• Reduce height – The taller your rose bushes are, the higher the risk of damage from strong winds. Over winter, your roses should ideally be no taller than four feet.
• Mulching – Applying mulch to the base of your roses will help to moderate the temperature of the soil, keeping it warm during frosty spells and ensuring your plants do not continually freeze and thaw.
RHS The Winter Garden: Celebrating the Forgotten Season by Naomi Slade
Unlock your garden’s winter potential and see the beauty and promise of the colder months with award-winning garden designer and author, Naomi Slade.
Available from Amazon here.
“Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire: it is time for home.”
– Edith Sitwell
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