Winter Garden & DIY Tips for Keen Home Gardener

Winter may be a dormant season in the garden but the keen home gardener will be busy throughout the winter garden season. Planning a schedule for jobs in the garden throughout the winter is a great idea and will be a visible reminder of all gardening jobs and DIY that still needs doing.

Of course, many winter garden tasks can only be carried out when the weather is opportune, so on any of the, perhaps infrequent, dry and mild winter days it makes sense to get out into the garden as much as possible.

Service Lawn & Garden Equipment

One of the most important winter tasks is to arrange a thorough service for all lawn and garden equipment, prior to the Spring rush at the garden service centers.

Garden tools such as hoes, shovels, spades, forks should be thoroughly cleaned and any blades sharpened. Keep the surfaces of these garden tools in tip top condition by wiping them with an oily cloth before storing in garden sheds or undercover for the winter months.

Winter Garden Fence Repair

Winter is the best time for carrying out fence repairs and painting as climbing plants are dormant. Thoroughly check all garden fence posts and panels for any rot or damage. If there is apparent damage, replace or repair these and paint them.

Also consider painting or weatherproofing garden fences thoroughly as any of the more vigorous climbing plants can easily be unsecured from fences during Winter. Further, the plants will not sustain damage due to creosote or fence paint as they are dormant.

Winter Garden & DIY Tasks for the Home Gardener

The best idea for scheduling winter garden and DIY jobs is to draw up a plan of all winter tasks that will need doing at the start of the dormant season and attempt to draft a timescale for carrying out this work. Of course, dates will need to be fairly flexible as they will be dependent upon weather conditions.

Types of garden and DIY jobs for winter are as follows:

• One of the main tasks will be to ensure heating in glass or greenhouses is working adequately before the onset of the really cold weather
• Rake lawns to remove moss
• Lag all outdoor waterpipes to prevent burst pipes in cold weather
• Clear up all fallen leaves and debris
• Ponds will need careful clearing of all debris and dead growth
• Break up solid surface of ice on ponds throughout Winter to oxygenate water. Floating a tennis ball on the surface of the pond should ensure a small area of water is ice free at all times.
• Sweep and clean down all patios and paving, getting rid of any moss and scum
• Clean and disinfect all containers and flower pots ready for Spring and store them in a frost free environment
• Empty out compost bins and make handy heaps of compost in the garden in preparation for winter digging
• When the winter weather is suitable, dig all vegetable and flower beds, incorporating a compost mulch into the top layer of soil
• Improve wet soil by digging in a large quantity of grit.

Perhaps one of the best winter tasks for keen gardeners, however, is sitting in front of a blazing fire leafing through seed and plant catalogs and planning out details of planting and color schemes for the following Spring and Summer.