Prep for the cold
Are your pots, tools and garden spaces ready for winter? Bob reveals how to make sure you’re ready for the big chill
IT ALWAYS makes sense to prepare for a cold winter. So before the arrival of frosts hard enough to damage them, make sure you empty watering cans, sprayers and so on. Never leave hoses with water in them – one hard frost, and they may rupture. Be especially vigilant with inexpensive thin plastic hosepipe, as this gets so brittle when cold that it shatters if moved, so put it away somewhere safe.
If you have a pool or pond, float a ball in it as this bobbing will keep water from freezing and it also allows noxious gases to escape.
Once most leaves have fallen, check your gutters are clean and downpipes clear (not blocked with a cluster of snails hibernating). Replace or put a sock on the spout to filter out further debris. You might consider emptying and cleaning water butts as well; they should re-fill this winter before you need water again.
Clean the glass and add some extra insulation to the greenhouse; bubble plastic held up with clothes pegs will keep it much warmer. Also, check that any automatic heater and ventilators are doing the right thing when they should be. Move the pots around with tender favourites in the warmest middle, and tougher specimens near the doors and corners. Do move every pot and look carefully under and around them to spot any pesky molluscs or woodlice in hiding. Winter brings powerful gales, so test the strength of all tree stakes, wires and posts. Double-check your fences are solid, as these are much easier to repair while still standing. It’s also important to plant soft fruit, shrubs and trees before the soil loses all its warmth, and then there’s any pruning left to get done. Finally, as British Summer Time (BST) finished last week, we’ve now got longer, darker nights, so make sure you fit a strong padlock to your garden shed…