The relationship with my garden in December cools with the weather to one of mutual mistrust and even disdain. Often only loyalty to memories of seasons past and hope in what is to come keep the relationship ticking over. If any of the shards of autumn still cling at its outset, they are all discarded by the end. The days are absurdly short with the sun sinking down exactly in line with the wooden greenhouse on 21 December so that - if it is not too cloudy-it lights up with an orange flare as though with chilly flames. Areas that are sun-filled from April to October get no light at all and if I do not set out to take the dogs for their walk by 3.30pm, I will almost certainly come home in the dark.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 2023 من BBC Gardeners World.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 2023 من BBC Gardeners World.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
Your wildlife month
December is a time for reflection in the garden. What worked for wildlife in 2023 and what didn't? How could you do more? Looking at the bones of the garden now, is there space for more plants? Are your fences bare? Are there enough berries and hips? You have until March to plant bare-root trees and shrubs. What would look good? What would better serve wildlife?
The Full Monty
I can, and occasionally do, manufacture jobs in a kind of gung-ho, boy-scout spirit
Hardwood cuttings
It's the zero-fuss way to make free new shrubs - just follow our guide from Nick Bailey
'It's like another lung - like having oxygen on tap. It makes you breathe in a different way'
Helen Maxwell's garden in rural Carmarthenshire surrounds the house that her husband (who's an architect) designed.
Tales from Titchmarsh
Sunday is a day for enjoying the garden in peace and quiet, says Alan, without the buzz, hum and drone of power tools
YOUR PRUNING MONTH
Frances Tophill shows you how to get greenery in shape ahead of the colder winter months
Winter greenhouse bounty Plant up winter veg
Keep your greenhouse fully stocked up with tasty salads and veg. In the second of our three-part series, Lucy Chamberlain reveals the crops to grow now
Tender plants
A cold snap can wreak havoc in the garden if you don't protect frost-tender and borderline-hardy plants. Alan Titchmarsh explains how to do it
YOUR PRUNING MONTH
Keep summer-fruiting raspberries productive and healthy with Frances Tophill's guide
Dividing your plants
Split big clumps into vigorous new plants with Nick Bailey's essential guide
