What to do in the garden in November

Winter is just around the corner, but there are still a few jobs to do before you put your garden to bed.

Plants and Flowers

• There is still time to plant tulip bulbs, daffodil bulbs and other spring flowering bulbs now. For more bulb planting tips take a look at our ‘How to grow bulbs’ article.
• Lift your Dahlia tubers, Gladiolus corms and Begonia tubers and store them somewhere dry, cool but frost-free for the winter.
• There is still time to lift and divide your herbaceous perennials provided the soil isn’t waterlogged or frozen. Read our ‘How to grow perennial plants’ article to find out more about dividing perennial plants.

Fruit and Veg

• Continue to plant garlic now whilst the soil is still workable. If you don’t have the space for growing garlic at the moment consider spring-planting garlic or growing garlic in containers.
• Raspberry canes can be planted any time between now and March, provided the soil isn’t frozen or waterlogged. Plant raspberries in a sunny or semi-shaded position on rich fertile soil for bumper crops.

Trees, Shrubs and Grasses

• You can start to prune your apple trees and pear trees as soon as they become dormant. Leave plum trees, cherry trees and apricot trees until next summer as winter pruning leaves them susceptible to silver leaf disease.

Garden Maintenance

• Improve your soil whilst it is still workable by forking in lots of organic matter such as manure, compost or recycled green waste.
• Collect any fallen leaves, particularly from your roses as diseases such as blackspot and rust will over-winter in this debris. Don’t compost diseased leaves – add them to normal household waste.
• Protect your half-hardy plants by packing the crown with shredded paper or straw and securing it in place with a layer of horticultural fleece or hessian sacks. Alternatively bring your plants into a greenhouse or conservatory.
• Install compost bins in your garden and fill with autumn leaves, dead plant material and woody prunings. Make sure you layer these plant materials with grass clippings or vegetable kitchen waste to aid the composting process.
• Check around the base of bonfires before lighting them just in case hedgehogs and other wildlife are sheltering there.
• Insulate your your greenhouse with bubble wrap to reduce heat loss over winter. Wrap permanent containers in bubble wrap and move them to a sheltered spot in the garden.

What’s your favourite job to do in the garden in November? Let us know in the comments below, or share them with us over on our Facebook page.