by Rose Harvie
Here we are, nearing the end of the year.
Hopefully your gardening has been enjoyable and productive.
If you concentrated on growing fruit and veggies, you should still have a good store of spuds, brassicas, and soft fruit.
Some of your crops – peas, runner beans and fruit, can be best stored in the freezer; tomatoes can be turned into chutney, and fruit into jam.
Now is the time to assess what was successful and what crops you would not grow again.
One of the most important crops is surely garlic.
It is easy to grow and should be planted before the end of the year.
Garlic likes cold winters and hot summers!
Most garden centres and all the seed catalogues will sell bulbs of garlic.
You should separate the individual cloves before planting about 10 cm apart.
It is worth covering the rows with netting, to prevent hungry birds pulling out the little green shoots.
If you separated strawberry runners, they should be growing well in their little pots by now, ready to plant in the spring.
Continue to keep on top of the weeds, which will continue to grow if we have a warm winter; and cover the veggie beds with either green manure, rotted compost, or manure.
Now is also the time to order your potatoes for next year.
Every gardener (and their family members) has their own favourite variety of spuds – waxy or floury!
Whatever variety you choose, they need to be ordered now, or carefully inspected if you have stored them in boxes in an outdoor shed or porch.
You may want to save some of your favourites for next year or buy new varieties.
In any case, you should ‘chit’ your spuds in a cool dry place at least a couple of months before you plant them, to allow them to start growing shoots.
Egg boxes from your supermarket are ideal for chitting spuds.
Sit each potato in an ‘egg space’, making sure the little shoots are the right way up!
Store in a shed and the shoots will start growing.
Don’t forget to label the potatoes.
It is worthwhile checking you have bought or ordered all your seeds, whether flowers or veggies.
With Christmas just around the corner, now is surely the right time to drop hints to your relatives about any equipment you would like!
Community gardens can start to organise their space for next year, and encourage residents without gardens to join them.
And finally, it is worthwhile talking to your local West Dunbartonshire councillor and pointing out there is an enormous waiting list for allotments and suggest various ‘un-used’ sites that might be suitable.
Happy gardening everyone…..