January Journey

January Journey

As I’m writing this I’m just back from my 5k walk, I’ve been inspired by Lough Gur’s fundraiser to walk 5k a day for the month of January.  Thankfully the weather while cold has been dry each time that I’ve ventured outside it has remained dry.  I’ve met a few neighbours on the road, and lots of wishes of Happy New Year being exchanged.

This is a month where the ground tends to get cold and maybe frozen so I’d recommend holding off planting any new trees/shrubs if the ground is frozen.  If you feel like getting out into the garden then there is always a few jobs that can be done, that are relatively easy and not too taxing or physical.

Hellebores are starting to flower now, sometimes they have a lot of leaves and it’s hard to see their flowers.  If you cut back some of the older leaves on the Hellebores and allow their beauty to shine through.  If you decide to pick a few of the flowers, if you put some water into a bowl and put the flower heads in, they’ll float in the bowl. Their heads are sometimes turned down on the stem, so this is an easy way to enjoy their beauty.

Rhubarb is something that comes back every year, one of the few perennial vegetables. If you put a cover over it now  to start trying to force them, you’ll have gorgeous tasty pink stems in a few months.  Rhubarb Crumble.. tart.. eton mess with lots of cream.. so many choices to make with it.

If you have perennials that you have done nothing with over the last few months, now is a good time to cut them back.  I see my own have gotten bitten over the last few days with the hard frost we’ve been having the last few days.

Garden Planning

January is a lovely time to start planning in your garden for the year ahead.  What kinds of flowers did you really like but didn’t grow this year.  What shrub is in the wrong place and needs to be moved? Have you a space where you have thought, I’d like to plant a tree there.  Or maybe you have realised you need a little more colour in the garden, pinks, blues, yellows, or maybe it’s that you would like to see colour earlier in the year.

What vegetables would you like to grow this year? I usually grow the same things every year, last year we grew Courgettes and they’ll definitely be going ahead this year. I like to try one new thing in the garden that I haven’t grown before, but try and stick with something that the kids might eat, or at least I’ll definitely eat. So I am busy making my list, sounds like my dinner really, Carrots, Parsnips, Potatoes, Peas, Turnip, Celery, Tomatoes and I might try Cucumber this year we’ll see.  I’m looking forward to seeing what lies ahead and where the Journey in the garden takes me this year.

Bare Root Season

There is still time to plant bare root trees & Hedging as the plants are still dormant.  I’m frequently asked what it means for a plant to be bare-root?  Simply put, it means the plants are not potted and have their roots exposed.

The key to success is making sure that the plant roots don’t dry out.  They can be stored in a polythene bag for a few days, provided that they are well watered in the bag.  If storing them for any longer, dig them into the ground in clumps, covering the roots completely.

If you’re looking for any advice, or if I can help in any way, don’t hesitate to call and see me at Rockbarton.

Lynda

Click here to see our selection of Bare Root Hedging  available.

If you’re looking for any advice, or if I can help in any way, don’t hesitate to call and see me at Rockbarton.

Lynda

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