A snow covered bird house in winter with snowflakes falling down.

As the weather turns colder and we are prepping our gardens for the winter, there are a lot of little jobs that we need to do. We have put together a list of manageable jobs for you to put your mind to this week.

  • After a frost, avoid treading on frosty grass, this can damage the grass.Refirm the roots of any shrubs that may have been lifted by frost. Switch off your outside water taps at the mains and leave the outside tap on. This drains any water that may be in the pipe, stopping the pipes from freezing.
  • Put out bird feeders, not forgetting fresh water. Encouraging birds into the garden will help reduce the number of insects and slugs. Also, stop feeding pond fish, remove, clean and service pond pumps.
  • Spray fruit trees. When all the leaves have fallen, spray with a winter tree wash, these are now vegetable oil based, as the traditional tar oil washes have been banned. This cleans the branches and kills fungal spores and over-wintering insects and their eggs. Note: Only use on a calm, still day, cover nearby ponds and green leaved plants, and wear suitable protection (gloves, goggles and mask are advised).
  • Prune blackberry and loganberry plants. Cut out the branches that have borne fruit and tie in new shoots to replace them.
  • November is the perfect time of year to plant deciduous trees, fruit trees, bare-rooted roses and hardy herbaceous plants. Doing this now whilst they are entering dormancy will allow them to get established without you having to water them during the drier summer days.
  • Clear shed and greenhouse gutters and put chicken wire over the top of them to stop them getting clogged with leaves.
  • Replace summer bedding in borders with winter flowering pansies, polyanthus, wallflowers, myosotis, tulips and daffodils bulbs.