Sheryn’s tips TO SAVE YOU TIME & EFFORT

Think of everything that will make your life simpler, and faster.

DEAL WITH WEEDS WHEN THEY'RE SMALL Pulling out a weed before it flowers and spreads seeds will save you the hassle of trying to control thousands more for years to come. The seeds of some species can remain viable in the soil for up to 50 years.

Pull out ragwort and top paddocks where there's young gorse plants. It's vastly more effective if you do it before the plants form seeds.

It also saves you a lot of time. It's very quick to pull out a little weed and leave it upside down on a garden bed for the worms to eat. It's much faster than pulling out a big weed, shaking the soil out of its roots, carting it over to the compost pile, stacking it, turning it, and waiting for it to decompose.

Hoe or poke in the little weeds every week, cover them with mulch, and let them decompose.

KNOW YOUR WEEDS You want to spot and stop an invasive weed when there's just one. Dig out all the roots.

PRUNE

Cut off diseased growth as soon as you notice it. Cut back or rub off watershoots while they're small, usually in spring.

FEED YOUR HIVE

You want to do this six weeks before your local food supply flush – bees will build up numbers in time to take maximum advantage of the flush.

RING CALVES EARLY

Do it while they're still suckling on their mother. It saves you both so much stress.

PLANT STRATEGICALLY Leaving plants waiting too long or planting before the soil is warm enough puts them under stress, making them more susceptible to disease and reducing survival and production rates.

TIDY AND MULCH THE ORCHARD IN NOVEMBER

Any earlier and weeds will regrow. Any later and the soil dries out too much.

BOOK HOMEKILL MIDYEAR FOR DECEMBER Kill beasts for the freezer in December. They'll be a good size after the spring flush, you get great meat for your summer barbecues, and it takes the pressure off pasture before dry summer weather slows grass growth.

USE ORGANIC MULCH

I call this in-situ composting. It's amazing how a knee-high pile of weeds, left in the garden and covered in woodchips in autumn, will disappear by spring. You're simultaneously insulating and feeding

the soil food web and readying your garden for planting.

WINTER WORK

Plant trees after the soil has been moistened by the first of the winter rains. The retained warmth in the soil and new moisture will encourage roots to establish, providing nourishment through spring. They’ll be healthier, more resistant to drought, and more likely to survive.

STOP & SAVOUR

Amongst all this efficiency, don’t forget the most important task of leaning on the gate and watching the grass grow. Is that animal content? Which type of grass is it eating? Which tree is blossoming? Which insects are feasting on the flowers? What has grown since last time you looked? What hasn’t? Where is the shade falling? Can you hear frogs croaking? Stop and savour the wonder of your world.