Kitchen Gardener Rob Smith carries out a few essential maintenance jobs
But you can still sow lettuce leaves for Christmas Day prawn cocktails!
December seems to be one of those months that can suddenly run away with you; in fact there’s so much to concentrate on later in the month that I always find it best to try to get a lot of the ‘must-do’ jobs out of the way early.
One of the jobs that needs doing every few weeks is gutter clearing, a rather messy job but one that stops shed or greenhouse gutters freezing full of water and causing damage with the weight of all that ice. You can get gadgets to put over the downpipes to stop leaves going into them and becoming blocked; it also stops any debris going into water butts where it can become smelly or clog taps. Make sure to remove as many leaves as possible at regular intervals, otherwise it can be a mammoth task if you let every gutter fill up. If you’re using steps or ladders, make sure you have someone to hold them and be careful of slipping on wet leaves.
Another couple of jobs that need attention before the weather gets too bad, and freezing causes damage, are draining hosepipes and insulating taps. There isn’t really much you need the hose for at this time of year, so if you haven't already drained yours and put it away, it’s best to do so now. Open both ends and let all the remaining water drain away, and this will stop it from freezing and damaging the hose; even if it doesn’t split it, it can still cause the hose to perish quicker. The same goes for taps, if they’re outside it’s best to either cover them with purpose-made tap insulators or cover them with old sacking and cover it in a plastic bag to keep the material dry. Remember it’s not just the tap that needs attention, the pipe that’s exposed to the elements will need either draining of water or lagging to prevent them from bursting as the weather gets colder, too.
With all these jobs it seems like there’s little growing going on, but it’s not too late to sow a few sweet peas if you want them to flower earlier than their spring-sown counterparts next year. The seedlings like deep root space, so either use root trainers or old toilet roll tubes filled with compost and held together with rubber bands to stop them falling over. If you've the
itch to grow veg, you can still also use windowsills to grow a few lettuce leaves. Just get a tray of moist compost and scatter the seed liberally; you want tender ‘cut-and-come-again’ leaves rather than a lettuce that will produce a head on the windowsill. I like to mix all the leftover lettuce seed from earlier in the year and sow them as a mix into trays or even old plastic tubs with holes in the bottom; these baby lettuce come in handy for sandwiches and salads, plus you should be able to harvest baby leaves to add to your
Christmas prawn cocktails if you sow some seeds this week!