November is a month of change as we slide towards winter and the first frosts arrive at last, there is Bonfire Night and fireworks to look forward to and the last few lingering warm autumn days to get out into the garden and enjoy… it’s especially lovely coming in from gardening at this time of year to a nice warm house!
This last month we have suffered a lot of stormy weather but plants have begun to perk up again after the dry spell in September – but with winter there is far worse weather to come and this month is a perfect time to get ready for it in the garden.
With all the rain, it’s important to keep an eye out for slugs and snails and remove them. You might also want to raise your pots up onto feet to stop them from getting waterlogged.
It’s a good idea to give your less hardy plants a good dose of mulch (such as compost) around the base of plants, it will help to insulate them against the cold weather. When the frosts arrive and blacken your dahlias, you will need to lift and store them for the winter.
This is a great time to dig new flowerbeds (so long as the ground isn’t hard and frosty) but if you are retreating indoors you could start ordering seed catalogues for next year and planning ahead for your garden.
For some excellent tips and advice with small gardens in particular, it’s worth checking out Monty Don’s new programme on BBC 2 called ‘Big Dreams, Small Spaces’ which is available on BBC iPlayer if you want to catch up on previous episodes.
If you have come across a new gardening programme or book that you would like to recommend, email me, I’d love to hear from you.
Happy Gardening!
Jobs for November:
- Keep deadheading still you’ll find it prolongs the flowering of lots of plants.
- Cut back brown, dying foliage.
- Last chance to plant tulips.
- Rake leaves, particularly off of flowerbeds.
- Check tree stakes are still in place.
- Watch out for slugs and snails (and even the odd caterpillar!) and remove.
- Weed, weed, weed!