OUTDOORLIVING
YOUR GARDEN THIS MONTH :
JANUARY
TOP 10 JOBS THIS MONTH
1 . Recycle your Christmas tree by shredding it for mulch
2 . Clean pots and greenhouses ready for spring
3 . Dig over any vacant plots that have not been dug already
4 . Repair and re-shape lawn edges
5 . Inspect stored tubers of Dahlia , Begonia and Canna for rots or drying out
6 . Prune apple and pear trees 7 . Start forcing rhubarb
8 . Plan your vegetable crop rotations for the coming season
9 . Keep putting out food and water for hungry birds
10 . Make a polythene shelter for outdoor peaches and nectarines , to protect against peach leaf curl
START FORCING RHUBARB
Keep rhubarb free of weeds by covering the ground with a mulch of composted manure , but avoid burying the crown as it will rot . Cover the area above the roots with 100g per square metre ( 4oz per square yard ) of general purpose fertiliser in March , and water regularly in dry spells to keep it moist and actively growing until autumn .
When the top growth dies back in autumn , remove the dead leaves to expose the crown to frost – this will help break dormancy and ensure a good crop of stalks the following year .
To get an earlier crop , you can force stems . To force stems , cover the crown with a traditional forcing jar , bucket or upturned pot in late winter , ensuring that all light is blocked out . Cover drainage holes in pots with a brick or stones . When stems reach the top of the container , they are ready for harvesting . Forced stems are lighter-coloured and more tender than those grown in the open , and are generally ready three weeks earlier .
LOOKING AFTER THE BIRDS
Help birds in winter by placing fat blocks in wire cages . Balls in plastic nets are not recommended as birds such as woodpeckers can get their tongues caught
Create your own fat blocks by melting suet into moulds such as coconut shells or logs with holes drilled in .
Alternate different recipes to entice a range of birds ; peanut cakes for starlings , insect cakes for tits and berry cakes for finches .
Put out finely chopped bacon rind and grated cheese for small birds such as wrens Although fat is important , do also provide a grain mix or nuts to maintain a balanced diet .
Sparrows , finches and nuthatches will enjoy prising the seeds out of sunflower heads . Nomess mixes are more expensive but the inclusion of de-husked sunflower hearts means there is less waste . Inferior mixes are often padded out with lentils Use wire mesh feeders for peanuts and seed feeders for other seed . Specially designed feeders are needed for the tiny niger seed , loved by goldfinches . Feed placed on a wire mesh held just off the ground will entice ground-feeding birds such as robins and dunnocks .
Thrushes and blackbirds favour fruit . Scatter over-ripe apples , raisins and song-bird mixes on the ground for them .
The RHS is a UK charity established to share the best in gardening . Their work is driven by a simple love of plants and the belief that gardeners make the world a better place .
For more information visit www . rhs . org . uk
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