December Gardening Newsletter From Jane Folis

IT doesn’t seem possible that December is just around the corner and another year is coming to a close. It has been quite an eventful one with plenty of really exciting projects, some nearing completion and others just beginning.
My job is made all the better working with all of you and I wish you a Very Happy Christmas and prosperous new year.
Jeremy, his wife and I went off to the Park Lane Hilton a couple of weeks ago to collect our award. It was an amazing event with about 700 people attending. The quality of work was exceptional and we feel very proud to have been a part of it. We think we will enter one or two next year and I am going to get a few published – so we might well be in contact in the spring/early summer to come and get some professional photographs taken.

The next three weeks are going to be a bit chaotic here, so I apologise in advance for any inconveniences. My office is sinking in one corner, which means I shall have to have it taken down and re-built. This is going to involve a military operation as my cottage is so small. Most of the contents of the office will be boxed up and stored in my neighbour?s garage and the rest in my sitting room and kitchen. We hope to have internet connection and my drawing board fully operative, but the reality remains to be seen. December is not the ideal time to have this work done, but it was the only slot we could find that suited everyone involved. The boxes are sitting here right next to me and I am going to make a start later today.

As a treat I have decided to take myself off to Florence for a mini-break from 16th to 19th December in the hope that I come back to a fully operative office ready for 2008. It is also a great excuse to stock up on some goodies for Christmas.

I hope you all have a wonderful break and I look forward to seeing many of you in 2008.

RECIPE

English Onion, Pale Ale and Horseradish Pot
3 tbs Olive Oil
3 white onions
2 cloves garlic
750ml stock
1 tsp white wine vinegar
100g Jerusalem artichokes
2tbs Demerara sugar
Oil for frying
270ml pale ale
4tbs grated horseradish
sea salt

Put Olive oil in a saucepan and add the peeled and sliced onions, sliced garlic and sugar. Cook on a low heat for 10-15 minutes until they are soft and golden. Add the pale ale, turn up the heat and reduce the liquid by half. Add the grated horseradish, stock and vinegar and cook for another 25-30 minutes. Place the peeled and sliced artichokes in a pan of hot oil and cook until crisp. Drain and season with the sea salt. Pour the soup into pots and garnish with the artichoke.

SEASONAL TIPS

As the weather has been relatively mild you could still plant bulbs.

If you have herbs in pots, such as Bay or Myrtle they could probably benefit from a bit of winter protection. Either bring them indoors or cover in some fleece. Other plants that could benefit from protection include:Tree ferns, Phormiums, Agapanthus

Pack a bit of straw around the leaves or fronds and then wrap in fleece. Straw is usually available in small packs in pet shops and you can buy fleece by the meter or in manageable packs from garden centres.

Plant roses, shrubs and trees. If you order bare root check when they first arrive and if they look in the least bit dry, water for several hours before planting.

If you have new borders to plant, or indeed the vegetable patch, now is a good time to dig over thoroughly and add good farmyard manure, rotted garden compost or other bulky organic matter. This will help break down the soil ready for planting in the spring.

Check stakes and tree ties before the winter weather sets in.

with most of the perennials now dormant it is a good time to take stock of the garden. Take a notebook and jot down where you have spaces and what you think might look good next year.

Clean up garden tools and oil them if necessary.

VEGETABLES AND FRUIT GARDEN

Keep watering if we get dry spells.

Lift and store root vegetables. Many can remain in the ground but species such as potato, celeriac and beetroot will suffer in the frosts.

Sow broad beans (Super Aquadulce is particularly frost resistant) and lettuces. If your ground is not too sticky or wet you can plant shallots and Jerusalem artichokes in December and January.

Fruit canes can all be planted out, as can garlic. Garlic needs at least one month in the ground with temperatures below 10 degrees in order to form bulbs. It is best not to use garlic bought in a supermarket. Try Marshalls www.marshalls-seeds.co.uk.

Winter prune apples and pears and prune grapes after the leaves have fallen. Apply grease bands to protect against winter moth. Spray peaches and nectarines against peach leaf curl.

Lift and divide Rhubarb crowns. Protect with straw to encourage early growth.

Start thinking about your seed order for next year. I can thoroughly recommend Marshalls and have used them for years.

GREENHOUSE

Fix bubble wrap inside glass houses for insulation and check your heaters are working. Reduce watering and feeding.

Sow lettuces ready for harvesting in March.