Tasks for January

Make the most of 'indoor days' to plan for next season, with seed and plant catalogues, and a layout of the garden.

Cover rhubarb crowns with straw and a forcer to grow early stems.(This cannot be done every year as it weakens the plant).

Dig over the veg patch on sunny dry days, and add manure if not growing root crops.

Prune back grape vines.

Ensure tools are clean, oiled and ready for next season.

Book machinery in for a service early in the new year.

The New and Old Year

2007 has been a very rollercoaster year, with so many highlights and disasters. The rain is something that I will not forget, when the melon houses flooded, the lake burst its banks and the major concert of the year was cancelled after the organisers went into receivership.

However, there were also high moments, that have included the renovation of the conservatory, the development of the kitchen garden, a visit from the Sealed Knot, the interesting experience of being followed by a film crew for the series on Sky TV, and of course the Illuminated Trail which is another event that I have always really enjoyed.

Talking of the Trail, the weather was so crisp and starry for the later half of the ten days that the lake froze. This meant that at the end of the trail we were unable to remove the lights from the island. The ice was too thick to launch the boat, and too thin to walk across. So the lights stayed put until boxing day, when we were finally able to launch our canoe and recover the equipment!

During a visit to my daughter in London just before Christmas I took to opportunity to pop into the Museum of Garden History,
(www.museumgardenhistory.org) just next to Lambeth Palace. (It is shut on Mondays as I found to my cost last time I tried to visit!) It was fascinating and I was sorry only to have an hour before I was due to meet up with my daughter. As I browsed the exhibits I noticed a plant stand previously owned by Ellen Willmott (Mr Berkeley's great aunt).
After a long and very interesting chat with one of the historians I discovered that Miss Willmott had purchased blank Minton tiles that had pictures impressed into them. Miss Willmott then painted the tiles and sent them back to be fired, as was a popular hobby of the day.(See pic.) These tiles were then used to decorate the plant stand. Each tile has Miss Willmott's name on the back. I was also very interested to discover that 2008 is the 150th anniversary of Miss Willmott's birth, and that the museum are thinking of putting on a dedicated display in her honour.

Winter in the Gardens

Well, I started November with the nastiest of colds, and have continued snuffling throughout the month. It is the season to be cold and poorly. The garden however has really benefited from the chilly weather, with a couple of sharp frosts causing the demise of many unwanted pests. (This month's picture is of a fern in the Fountain Beds, covered in frost.)

The garden is still looking bright although most of the leaves are off the trees now. There are little pockets of colour still showing with berries and seeds. One of my favourites is the Callicarpa Profusion, with its vibrant purple berries.

In my June and July diaries I mentioned the problem with rabbits we've had in the kitchen garden. After trying to be really vigilant about shutting gates etc. with little success, we've found the reason... an enormous excavation within Miss Berkeley's flower patch, that had gone unnoticed until she started lifting dahlias and cannas last week. It appears that rabbits have tried to take up residence, with a buffet breakfast by the front door every morning.

Last month also saw the retirement of Dennis, our Kitchen Gardener, who worked at Spetchley for almost 20 years, after retiring from a job in engineering. We will really miss him, but he has promised to continue to mend any broken tools we can drop by as he has always done in the past!

We are still having the fun of being filmed by Halo Films, who have just started to film the preparations for the Illuminated Trail. They are getting to the end of the 25 programmes now, but apparently DVD sets of the series will be available next year.

We have started a lot of the background preparation for the Trail, and the more time consuming pruning has already been done, including putting up protective barriers around the lake. The electricians have installed the lighting and the gardeners will be preparing the grotto for the arrival of Father Christmas.

See you all at the Illuminated Trail!

Kate

Tasks for December

Wash and store seed trays and pots ready for next year.

Keep off the grass when frosty or wet.

Now is a good time to prune back roses that are likely to be affected by the wind.

Keep an eye on the weather and keep greenhouse heaters on when the temperature dips.

Lift and store dahlias and cannas once the foliage has been frosted.
(You can lift half from each clump and cover the remaining tubers with leafmould. This will give a longer flowering season next year).

Rake up fallen leaves and store them in a pile to rot down into leafmould.

End of the 2007 Season

I am always amazed at how fast the seasons go, but this year seems to have passed especially quickly. I look out of my study window and see the trees changing to yellow and gold in the copse, and a little further towards the New Lawn the Cornus Norman Hadden has spectacular fruit. (See pic.)

2 more hedgehogs were released into the gardens at the beginning of the month. ' The Hedgehog Halfway House' in Worcester is very keen to release hedgehogs back into safe environments and the gardens are full of cosy places to hide. We have been talking to the Gamekeeper about releasing some more hedgehogs into the surrounding woodlands too.

For a couple of weeks at the beginning of October we had a firm of tree surgeons in the garden, removing dangerous branches, and felling rotten trees. There were two 200 year old trees on the main lawn, a beech and an oak, that had to be felled due to their deteriorating condition. Two of the yews in my garden are also to be felled as they are very close to the cottage and squirrels are using them as a route to get onto the roof to eat the lead flashing!

In the middle of the month we had the 'Armoured Picnic', where re-enactors from various groups camped in one of the fields over the weekend, and set up 'living history encampments'. We went with family members, and really enjoyed talking to the people involved. The encampments were set up at the same time as the trees were being made safe, so just prior to the event the gardeners had to go round the entire garden cordoning off branches and brush that had yet to be cleared away.

Mid October saw the beginning of a change in the weather as it began to turn frosty at night, so we then needed to ensure that all the vulnerable plants had either been taken into the greenhouses, or covered in horticultural fleece. Thankfully, the conservatory renovation has all been completed and the plants that usually live there have been returned to their warm winter quarters from their summer outing in the vinery!

Best Wishes
Kate

Tasks for November

Pick any remaining apples and prepare them for winter storage in a cool, dry place, and inspect regularly.

Check guttering/drains and keep them clear.

On dry breezy days continue to cut lawns with mower blades set high.

Try to avoid walking on grass when the weather is frosty.

Begin to collect fallen leaves, and store them in a bin bag or a container made from chicken wire, in a corner of the garden and will turn into leafmold in 18 months.

Top dress borders with well rotted farmyard manure, or garden compost.

Your local recycling centre may be able to provide compost at low cost.

Topical Tips for October

Put frost protection round any plants that will be staying out for the winter.

Prepare the garden for winter: keep drains and ponds etc free from leaves and debris, clean and store garden tools, ensure that greenhouse glass is clean, and that any shading has been replaced by insulation.

Start sowings of hardy annuals and sweet peas under glass.

Change the plantings in hanging baskets for winter interest.

Take hardwood cuttings of deciduous shrubs, and gather clematis seed for sowing in a cold frame.

Feed roses with sulphate of potash to ripen the wood and make the plants more disease resistant.

Lift dahlias after the first frosts blacken their leaves.

Place netting over ponds to catch leaves.