It’s cut and dried (From Gazette & Herald)

It’s cut and dried

12:40pm Saturday 3rd December 2011 in Gardening

Hydrangeas make for wonderful indoor decoration if you cut the flowers and take them in from the cold, writes GINA PARKINSON

THIS time last year our gardens were thickly covered in snow, schools were closed and many of us were struggling into work. How different it is so far this year with relatively mild temperatures and a damp cloud cover.

So as we go into December, it looks as though it will be possible do a few gardening tasks before the real winter starts.

December is the time for a final tidy-up before it gets too cold. The recent wind has removed much of the autumn foliage from the trees, which needs to be gathered up from the lawn, ponds and evergreen plants in the beds.

It can be left on bare soil around the plants to act as a protective layer over herbaceous specimens and bulbs, where it will also provide food for worms which drag the foliage under the earth.

On a dryish day, it may still be possible to cut the lawn. The grass will keep growing in mild temperatures, although it feels odd to get the mower out in December; avoid this job in frosty weather.

It is a good idea to raise the height of the cutters so just the tips of the blades are removed. Growth will be much slower at this time of year and it isn’t necessary to cut it as far down as a summer mow.

Some deciduous trees and shrubs can be pruned. Most of their foliage will have gone and it is easy to see the branches and stems that need to be removed.

Dead, diseased and damaged stems can be taken back first, followed by those that need trimming to keep the plant in check or improve its appearance.

There are always exceptions, including buddleia, which is usually taken back by about one third now and then hard pruned in March, and early-flowering blossom trees.

Apart from taking out damaged branches, these specimens are best left until after they have flowered as over-enthusiastic winter pruning can affect their spring show. Mop-head hydrangeas can also be left for the winter, although a few of the flowers can be removed for indoor winter decoration. There may still be time to cut a few before they begin to turn brown and take on their faded winter hues.

Mop-head hydrangeas are such common plants with their big pink or blue flowers seen everywhere in summer. As the weather begins to cool, the blooms deepen in colour and take on shades of maroon and purple, tinged sometimes with bluish greens and gold. It is at this point they can be harvested, just before the first of the petals turn papery brown.

They should be cut with as long a stems as is possible, then taken inside and put into a large vase. They can be hung upside down for a while to dry, although this isn’t usually necessary; they dry out easily inside and out of the cold.

Remaining flowers can be left on the bush until early spring, as they can offer a little protection from frost for the new buds.

In the veg patch

THERE is still time to plant garlic. The bulb needs to broken into individual cloves, which are then planted into the soil a few inches apart. They like a sunny, well-drained spot that doesn’t become waterlogged in winter or bone dry in summer. A period of cold triggers the clove to divide, which is why winter planting is recommended.

Weekend catch-up

IT IS worth looking in the local garden centre for bargain spring-flowering bulbs as they may be sold off this month. As long as the bulbs are still in good condition, firm and without long shoots appearing, you can put them in the garden or in an outdoor container. The flowers may appear later than suggested on the pack, but after that first year they will revert back to their normal flowering time.

gardening TV and radio

Tomorrow

8am, BBC Radio Humberside, The Great Outdoors. Presented by Blair Jacobs and Doug Stewart.

9am, BBC Radio Leeds, Tim Crowther and Joe Maiden.

2pm, BBC R4, Gardeners’ Question Time. Chairman Peter Gibbs keeps order in East Sussex where he joins panellists Bunny Guinness, Pippa Greenwood and Matthew Wilson to answer questions.

Friday

3pm, BBC R4, Gardeners’ Question Time. Pippa Greenwood, Bunny Guinness, Matthew Wilson and chairman Eric Robson help gardeners from the Scottish Borders and Bob Flowerdew advises on how to make an allotment thief proof.

9pm, BBC2, Gardeners’ World Christmas Special. In an hour-long programme, Monty Don and Rachel de Thame clear up the gardens at Longmeadow and Rachel also looks at using garden material to make Christmas decorations. Joe Swift explores growing grapes at home and poet Pam Ayres shows how to encourage wildlife into the garden.

Saturday, December 10

7am, BBC Radio York, Julia Booth. Presenter Julia Booth and plant expert Nigel Harrison hold their weekly plant surgery.