Midcheshire Independent Issue 174

JANUARY 2025 16 Independent HOMES & GARDEN • Pruning of deciduous trees, shrubs andhedges canbe carriedout now and throughout the dormant season – it’s also easier to seewhat you are doingwhen the branches have no leaves! Think acers, beech, hazel, hydrangeas and roses. • Cleaning pots and greenhouses ready for springwhich helps control pests and diseases. Giving your greenhouse a clean now, whether glass or plastic, greatly improves the growing environment for plants by removing the build-up of algae, moss and grime to let in more light. • Planning your crop rotation for the coming growing season if you are growing your own fruit and veg. The principle of crop rotation is to grow specific groups of vegetables on a different part of the vegetable plot each year.This helps to reduce a build-up of crop-specific pest and disease problems and it organises groups of crops according to their cultivation needs. JOBSTODO THISMONTH Tired of the old fridge freezer taking up space in your garden? Or maybe have an old sofa lying round and just haven't found the time to get it removed? It's time to get it gone! Call us and have it collected and recycled by an environment agency licenced waste carrier. Several councils have shut down their local waste sites. This has caused huge queues at the sites still open, making trips out to dispose of household waste time consuming and frustrating. Take the hassle out of it. Call us today on 07492 762 492 We will not only collect your items at a convenient time for you, but dispose of them safely and legally at registered waste sites. We are an environment agency licenced waste carrier (CBDU521692) NEED TO CLEAR SOME HOUSEHOLD OR GARDEN ITEMS? Scrap metal collected free of charge. Call us for a quote on anything else! We can help with the disposal of: MOVE IT OR REMOVE IT 07492 762492 � Garden waste � Household items � Furniture � Electrical items � Bags of rubbish PLANNING out your garden for the year? Ornamental grasses can be used to great effect and are perfect plants for containers. They can provide a calming effect or a more dynamic focus to specific areas of your outdoor living space. Growing grasses in pots com- bines the beauty and versatility of ornamental plants with the freedom of container gardening, which means you can move them around according to the seasons or personal preference. Most ornamental grasses adapt really well to container culture and some are actually easier and more practical to grow in pots as it keeps them under control. Select good-sized pots to suit maturing plants and remember to feed and water and to pot the plants into bigger pots when their roots have filled the pot. They do not need much feeding though, one application of a bal- anced fertiliser in spring is ade- quate. The up-side of ornamental grasses is that they are relatively low maintenance and generally suffer from few problems if they are kept in the right part of your garden for their needs – light, shady, partial shade. AS January arrives and you start to think about this year’s growing season and your plans for your garden or outside space, why not factor in some features that help attract wildlife. Whatever the size of your garden creating a wildlife friendly habitat is simple to do and can attract a host of garden visitors. Small creature friendly features that will attract and sustain wildlife can be incorporated into any outside space – and are relatively easy to maintain. One simple solution is to create a mini woodland with trees and shrubs or plant a hedgerow. Natural hedgerows are long lasting, wildlife friendly and sustainable alternatives to garden fencing. In addition to providing cover and food for nesting birds, hedges left to flower and fruit with berries will also provide a valuable source of food and shelter for other wildlife. Traditional hedgerows contain several Growing gracefully Some of the most popular vari- eties include: • Carex, a tuft forming ever- green perennial that is very tough and contemporary and look good all winter. Try Carex ‘Milk Chocolate’ - a richly coloured variety that slowly forms a dense mound. It has dark purple and brown slender foliage with delicate pink edges that turn into autumnal shades of orange and brown as winter approaches, growing to a height of 60cm. • Stipa tenuissima, also known as Mexican Feathergrass, is hardy and fast growing produc- ing a frothing cascade of yellow flowers. An elegant grass with fine, gently arching leaves. Feathery plumes of flowers emerge from June to Septem- ber and mature to a soft golden brown in winter. It can grow up to 100cm. • Festuca glauca is a tufted evergreen grass forming a tactile mound of thin blue- green leaves. Summertime brings buff coloured feathery flower stems that rise above the foliage and move gently in the breeze. A really versatile plant that reaches a height of around 40cm and adds year- round colour and texture to any container garden. A good start to the year January might be the middle of winter but as the days lengthen the garden starts to grow. So now is a great time to plan for the coming gardening year and to order seeds and plants. Enjoy the fresh air on dry sunny days and check your winter pro- tection, stakes, ties and supports are still working after any severe weather. Also put out food for birds and leave some garden areas uncut, a little longer, to provide shelter for wildlife in your garden. Gardeners’ World’s Monty Don says: “There are jobs to do in January but few that cannot wait until better weather or opportunities in February if need be. “But I try and get done what is needed as soon as possible as an insurance against future bad weather. “Also, if it is very frosty, saturated soil is blessedly dry for a change and so you can wheel wheelbarrows and walk on the grass without reducing it to a sloppy quagmire. “Trees and shrubs will come to no harm if pruned when it is cold so a spell of frosty weather means pruning.” different plant varieties like hawthorn, hornbeam and dog rose. January can be a difficult month for wildlife as natural sources of food are in short supply, so it’s important to ensure that bird feeders are regularly topped up and water supplies are fresh and not left to freeze. In severe weather, the RSPB advises putting out high-energy, high fat food for birds twice a day - in the morn- ing and early afternoon - to keep up with demand. As well as birds, insects need some thought at this time of year. A good pol- linator plant for January flowering is Winter Heather (Erica carnea). While heathers are best grown in acidic soils, some can also thrive in neutral soil conditions – welcome news for gardeners wanting both colour and bee-friendly flowers in the depths of winter. This winter flowering shrub likes a sunny spot where it can slowly spread out and its small bell-shaped flowers that hang from evergreen shoots are a favourite of honey bees.