Gardener’s calendar

January is in the middle of winter, as it follows, it is a rest time for gardeners. However, the gardening success consists of many elements, without the interplay of which will not achieve the intended purpose. Therefore, it is an appropriate month for planning the upcoming season – how we would like to make our garden look like and what and when to do in order to succeed. If we are willing to create a vegetable garden, it is recommended to draw it on a piece of paper, to avoid subsequent errors in determining the flower beds.

Therefore let prepare ourselves for the upcoming spring – it is time to plan the plantings, sow particular plants and sharpen the tools. Protection against frost and wind is also very important. It is also needed to put special effort into wintering plants, to prevent them from exposure to damage caused by low temperatures. In case of heavy snowfall, you should flick branches of conifers, in order to prevent them from breaking.

January is also the time of bleaching fruit trees - one of the most important treatments in the orchard. This allows you to keep them in good condition and prevent from damaging the cortex resulting from sudden temperature changes. How to do it? The best way is to use milk of lime, that is, prepare a mixture of approx. 2 kg of calcium per 10 liters of water. After thoroughly stirring, the mixture should be applied with a brush on the trunks of fruit trees and on the base of the thicker branches. It is worth painting the trees slightly higher from the southern side.

The day is getting longer – this is the signal for plants to slowly awake from hibernation. The end of the first month is the time of pruning trees and shrubs. Remember to start this operation from frost-resistant species. The cut wounds should be lubricated with protective paste. Let's check also covers protecting from frost – those could be damaged by the wind.

Spring is coming! So you can start to slowly remove the winter protection, whilst continuing to defend our garden from frost. It is worth to do it on a cloudy day – then the plants should be exposed to small fluctuations of temperature. It is also time for the first cleanup – plundering of leaves, lawn aeration, removal of dead shoots and leaves, which are a source of diseases.

Let's take a closer look at our plants for frost damages. You can also perform cutting in order to scan the crowns of fruit trees. This will provide more light and enhance their condition.

It is the time of intensive gardening!

Sowing the soil

Let's start preparing the soil for planting.

Autumn is the proper time for vegetable seeding, fertilization and ground digging in the vegetable garden. However, if for some reason there was a need to do this during spring, the soil must be leveled by rake immediately after digging, in order to reduce the moisture loss. The appropriate fertilizer should be applied, preferably decomposed compost or manure in small quantities. Thus prepared soil should be left for a few days to get settled.

Flowerbeds

The next step is assigning of the beds (120 cm) and the paths between them (40 cm wide). String attached to two pins would be helpful, in order to maintain a straight line.

Warning! Headlands should not be too high. Unlike the soil on their banks will quickly dry up.

Seeds

The seeds of some vegetables should soaked before sowing, or kept in water at room temperature for about a day. Then we dry them on paper and immediately sow.

Sowing

There are three methods of sowing small seeds:

• row sowing (eg. carrots, onions) - the aforementioned string with 2 pins will be useful for assigning the row, to sow seeds. Then create a gully using eg. the stem of a rake along the entire length of an acre. 
• Broadcast sowing (ie. dill) – seed are strewed over the entire surface and covered  by the thin layer of soil.
• Precision seed (eg. radish) - seeds are placed in a row one at hand.

After sowing the seeds should be covered by soil (seeding depth should be indicated on the packaging of seeds) and watered with very gentle stream of water, preferably with a watering can.

Other activities

As soon as the soil dries, it should be cultivated and the surface supposed to be flattened. It is also necessary to remove the emergent weed and supplement the litter under bushes.
Best suited for this is peat or compost chard - a 5 cm thick layer will hinder the evaporation of water from the soil and reduce weed growth. In April, winter pruning of trees in the orchard should be completed. However, planting new trees and shrubs supposed to be started in the previously prepared soil. You can also perform preventive insecticide and fungicide spraying. It is also a good time for setting up rock gardens.

This is a month of intensive growth of all plants, so we cannot forget about watering and scarifying the topsoil. Compound fertilizers would also be suitable for our garden.  In case of small rainfalls, young trees and shrubs require abundant watering. Cut the withered bulbs (eg. Narcissus, tulips), plants (eg. Briar) and withered inflorescences (eg. Rhododendrons, azaleas). May is the time of sowing the ground with many herbs and planting flowers, which are sensitive to frost (eg. Pansies, marigolds).

It is also important to regularly look over the leaves of all plants. If you notice aphids, locks or caterpillars, you need to apply a protective spray against the affected cases.

This is the time when summer seizes power over nature. It is not without significance for our garden. More and more frequent hot and dry days will require us to remember about irrigating our plants. Despite the holiday season, someone always has to look after the garden.

June is the month of large harvest of fruits and vegetables. The first fruits that appear in this season are strawberries, gooseberries, raspberries and currants. It is also the time of a strong growth of our previously planted trees and shrubs. Regular watering is essential. Unfortunately, unwelcome guests are also growing rapidly - weeds. It is important to weed the soil and to tend the plants on the regular basis, in order to protect them from pests and diseases.

In the second half of the month,  deciduous and coniferous hedges should be cut, profusely watered and fertilized. If there are rose bushes in our garden, then we should cut the stems containing withered flowers.

Besides the fruit and vegetable crops, we must not forget the onion plants that have already overblown – they should be dug up. We keep them in a well-ventilated, dry area. After 2 weeks, we clean them and move to a cooler location.

Flowering plants need special care - continuous watering, as well as frequent fertilization, especially nitrogen. Withered inflorescences of shrubs should be removed.   

The summer lasts, but we have to think about next season, because in the first half of August, for example, we plant snowdrops and crocuses that bloom next year.

In the second half of the month, we plant trees, coniferous and deciduous shrubs and evergreen shrubs.

At the end of the month, we cut shrubs and deciduous trees and conifers for the last time. Then, we supply them with a fertilizer rich in nitrogen, in order to give them the time to become woody before winter. It is also a good idea to spray our plants against aphids and spider mites.

In case of fruit trees, cut branches that block access to light in the middle of the tree crown.

If in our garden there are raspberries, we have to remove all the shoots that bore fruit this year, after the harvest.

Summer is slowly coming to an end, giving way to fall. Days increasingly begin to shorten and the sun is not warming up that much. Therefore, we need to remove dead, diseased shoots and annual plants, and perform weed control, soil scarifying and its fertilization.

September is also the time for planting heaths, heathers and bulbous plants overwintering in the soil, e.g. Narcissi, hyacinths and grape hyacinths.

It is a time that ends fructification processes, as it follows, nature is preparing for the upcoming winter. Less and less of the sunlight is visible on the picturesque colors of the leaves. But let us not be fooled –first frosts can occur during this month. This is the reason why roses, hydrangeas, clematis or buddleias need our help - we have to marcottage. Root stems of these plants should be backfilled with soil or bark to a height of 20 - 40 cm. Therefore, in case of freezing, the plant will bounce from the lower parts.

October is also a good time for fertilizing (phosphorus and nitrogen fertilizers or compost), and planting trees and shrubs, as well as ornamental deciduous and coniferous trees.

This is the last month of autumn colors and time for autumn tidying. Herbaceous borders should be cleared from the rest of annual plants, dried perennial parts, all inflorescences and seed parts infested with diseases. We rake the leaves which can be used as mulch or compost additive. However, make sure that they come from healthy trees – otherwise,  they could transfer diseases. Plants sensitive to frost must be secured (e.g. matadors).

Do not forget about the evergreen plants – they require deep hydration before the coming frost. The plants will be exposed to drying on cold and sunny days.

However, plants kept in the house should be watered once every two weeks. If there are columnar conifers (eg. cypresses) in our garden, they supposed to be tied with a string - this will prevent them from breaking by the snow.

Herbaceous borders can be organized before the first frost. After the digging, they should be left without raking - this will help collecting moisture from rainfalls.

It is important to make sure, that all the plants with roots which are poorly resistant to frost were covered with bark or sawdust.

The time when our garden hibernates over winter. Check the condition of the bulbs of flowers, which are of stored there. Those ones with visible disease symptoms must be immediately removed. Do not forget about our winged friends. A feeding the birds during winter time can save their lives. Hang out portions of bacon or spill some grains into feeders. Singing blue-tits and robins are beautiful diversion of these winter days.