December in the Garden

Snip away any leaves remaining on the roses, clean up underneath the plants, and spray with lime sulphur during mild, dry weather.

Check stored fruits, vegetables, and summer-flowering bulbs. Remove any that have begun to rot. Bring sprouted onions to the kitchen to use as fresh scallions. For a prolonged succession of onion greens, pot the sprouted bulbs and set them on a bright windowsill.

Cut away any mouldy patches on stored begonia tubers or dahlia roots. Rub the cut surfaces with sulphur powder and leave them exposed to fresh air for a few hours before recovering and storing.

For a fresh-from-the-garden look to Christmas gift packages, tuck a few sprigs of holly, Oregon grape, juniper, skimmia, or other evergreen under the ribbon.

Keep bird feeders filled during the winter. If you don't have one, consider buying or building a bird feeder. Place it where the bird activity can be enjoyed from a house window.

Water house plants sparingly now that natural light levels are low and days are short. Overwinter desert cacti in a cold but frost-free place with little water until spring.

Select a cut Christmas tree that is not shedding needles, and re-cut the base before standing it in a bucket of water indoors. Situate the tree away from sources of heat, and keep the tree holder topped up with fresh water daily.

Keep a potted tree indoors no more than a week or ten days, in the coolest location possible.

Use dried flowers from the summer's garden to make a holiday arrangement in a vase or basket and to fashion a few gift bouquets. Tape floral foam to the bottoms of cracked tea cups or soup bowls, little wicker baskets, or seashells to hold the dried blooms.

Repair existing fences, arbours, and trellises. Begin building new garden structures.