Escape the festive hubbub in your favourite place
Welcome to the final 2024 issue of Amateur Gardening, and what a year it has been.
Whether we’re thinking about instability in world events or the increasing demands of climate change, it’s clear to see that we are living through times that are not for the faint-hearted.
Luckily we have the strange days between now and the new year to use as a safe space, to breathe deeply, live gently, reset and recharge the energies in our optimism banks.
Yes, there will be testing times – personally I find it hard to be 100% upbeat and ‘yay let’s party!’ at this time of year when all I really want to do is snuggle down in the warmth with a good book and a hot toddy, or go for a bracing walk and only see the people I need to be with.
Thank goodness, then, for the garden where I can escape to, breathe deeply and work off some excess festive calories.
I have a list of things to accomplish this fortnight, including trimming our potentilla bushes into shape, emptying the compost and mulching the beds (as long as the garden isn’t underwater or frozen), sorting the shed and planning my New Year sowings and buyings.
I’m already excited about my early January visit to our local garden center that sells off the previous year’s unsold perennials and fruit bushes for a pound a pop!
As I write this, looking out into the garden, I see our handsome family of crows making the most of the chopped up suet blocks and seed I scattered earlier, valiantly keeping the pair of magpies and a couple of cheeky squirrels at bay.
The bird feeders are laden with tits of all varieties, there’s a chaffinch poking around the lawn and a robin (how festive!) scavenging among the wintry foliage.
The next few weeks will be full of festive cheer for many of us, and we will enjoy it to the full. But don’t forget those who are not so blessed. Spare a thought for the elderly and alone, maybe check on that neighbour you haven’t seen for a while, call that old friend going through a hard time, offer tea and a mince pie to someone you know is struggling.
As we see out 2024 and welcome 2025 with all its still-formless dreams and opportunities, here’s wishing you and yours the best festive joy, and a happy, peaceful, safe new year of gardening ahead.
Quick festive fixes
Keep things ticking over
1. Make sure trees (especially new plantings) are well staked and supported against winter storms.
2. Keep a steady supply of fresh food and water available for birds and wildlife.
3. Avoid festive tumbles by making sure hard surfaces are regularly swept and cleaned and kept ice-free.
4. Don’t walk on, or work the garden, if it’s frozen or waterlogged as you’ll damage the grass and soil.
Find more tips, advice and articles like this at the Amateur Gardening website. Subscribe to Amateur Gardening magazine now
