Gardening Tasks for January

January is the time for clearing away last year’s debris and making preparations for the gardening year ahead. Most herbaceous plants will have died back to ground level and any remaining untidy stems can be cut down to ground level. Take care not to damage any new emerging shoots.

You can carefully rake between plants to remove any dead leaves and stems and put them straight into the compost.

Now is the time to finish taking hardwood cuttings from shrubs, trees and roses. Cover your gunnera with straw to protect the crowns from frost. Pick off any hellebore leaves that have black blotches. Plant roses, hedging and other bare rooted trees and shrubs. Prune wall climbers, such as ivy, away from window frames and gutters. Lift and divide congested clumps of snowdrops.

This is the perfect time to rejuvenate your rhubarb plants. As the clumps get older, they lose vigour, producing fewer succulent stems for picking in spring. Dig deeply to lift clumps whole with as much root as possible. Pull them apart or chop them into smaller portions, each with one or more buds at the top and a few roots at the base. The oldest central portion of the clump will no longer be productive and can be discarded. Choose a sunny position, digging a couple of bucket-loads of manure or compost deeply into the soil, then replant your healthy portions of rhubarb with the buds resting just below soil level.

If you want to have a good fruit crop now is the time to spread compost or well rotted manure around bushes and canes. Extra organic matter improves the water holding capacity of the soil and the more moisture available next summer, the bigger the fruits. Sprinkle sulphate of potash on to the soil before mulching or feed in early spring. Potassium is essential for good flowering and fruiting, and an annual feed is highly recommended.

Clear old crops from your veg plot and fork in compost. Fill a trench with kitchen waste for future bean sowings. Use cloches to warm the soil ready for early sowing. Cover rhubarb crowns with forcing jars. Plant new fruit trees, cane fruits and bushes. Dig up and pot mint roots to force early shoots.

If you have a greenhouse make sure your paraffin heater is topped up with oil. If you are using gas bottles make sure you have a spare. Make sure that you have a small amount of ventilation to ensure they burn efficiently and that the fumes can escape.

Raise pots off the ground to ensure that compost drains freely. Provide birds with fresh water and good quality bird food. Move pots to sheltered sites during cold periods. Knock snow from branches of evergreen shrubs shrubs and conifers to prevent branches breaking under the weight. Order bulbs, corms and tubers for summer flowers, such as dahlias, lilies and gladioli.