This is the DECEMBER installment of Horticulture Week's month-by-month guide to essential maintenance and management tasks for parks, gardens and grounds maintenance staff.
Office
- Order seeds, pots, trays and containers
- Review tools and equipment, noting those requiring replacement
General
- Clear debris as it arises
- Move any plants in the wrong place
- Continue winter digging
- Check over tools, clean and sharpen where appropriate
- Service mowers and other equipment
- Feed the birds
Trees, shrubs and hedges
- Inspect for wind damage and check ties and stakes
- Clear snow off conifers, shrubs and hedges
- Prune woody ornamentals as necessary
- Continue planting so long as the soil is not frozen or waterlogged
Beds and borders
- Continue cutting down dead growth
- Lift and divide if soil and weather are suitable
- Continue taking root cuttings
Wall plants
- Take hardwood cuttings of deciduous climbers
Bulbs
- Inspects stores regularly
Containers
- Check regularly
Greenhouses and conservatories
- Check for panes loosened by gales
- Keep tidy and water plants carefully
*Jobs should only be undertaken when ground and weather conditions are suitable and will vary according to location and may vary significantly from year to year. And remember that while the year nicely divides into 12 months, activities often overlap.
