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Now is the time to set out your new gardening calendar and remind yourself of some of the tasks you need to do throughout the season.
Follow this month-by-month bullet point guide to some of the essential tasks to be scheduled for 2026.
January
Check insulation around outdoor faucets and perform repair work on broken fence panels, greenhouses and sheds.
If it’s windy but not wet, water the plants in containers because anything coming to life will need water to survive.
Prune wisteria when side shoots are easily visible.
Order seeds from catalogs and online suppliers, and sow early crops like lettuce, radishes and early carrots under glass if you have a frost-free greenhouse.
february
Prune large-flowered (Group 3) clematis, which flower from mid to late summer in the current season, including ‘Pearle d’Azur’, ‘Etoile Violette’ and ‘Ville de Lyon’ varieties.
Reduce deciduous hedging before birds start nesting in it.
Plant summer-blooming lily-like bulbs either directly inside borders, if the ground is not frozen or waterlogged, or in pots.
If weather permits, plant bare-root shrubs, including roses and bare-root raspberries.
march
Begin weeding, removing weed plants as soon as they appear and removing noxious weeds by hand.
Plant potted trees, shrubs and vines.
Prune bush, bush and climbing roses, Buddleia davidii, dogwood with colorful winter stems and willow.
Mulch the soil with a generous layer of organic matter up to 5 cm deep to enrich the soil and suppress weeds.
Lay new turf while the soil is still fairly moist but warming up.
april
Be careful of slugs, which will destroy young emerging plants. Set up bear traps, or place eggshells around vulnerable leaves, or remove slugs after rain. Alternatively try biological control, a nematode that attacks them can be watered onto the soil.
Deadhead daffodils and other spring-flowering bulbs before they begin to form seedheads, which ensures the bulb’s energy is focused on next year’s flowers.
Continue to sow vegetable seeds like broad beans, peas and lettuce directly into prepared soil.
Clear overcrowded ponds by dividing large groups of water hyacinth.
May
When all danger of frost has passed (which may be well into the next month in colder regions), plant summer beds in borders and containers and hanging baskets and water them thoroughly.
Prune early flowering shrubs like forsythia and Japani Quince (Chaenomeles) to encourage flowering the following year.
Continue to mow and feed your lawn once the grass is growing well and reduce the mower blades slightly as the season progresses, but avoid ‘scaling’ the lawn.
sow indoor seeds of French Place beans, zucchini, runner beans and sweetcorn in cells or small pots. Place them on a sunny windowsill to encourage them to germinate and they will be ready for planting in early June.
Place straw under strawberry plants to help prevent the fruits from getting wet from the ground or being attacked by slugs.
june
Plant tomatoes in the garden, water them well – and start feeding them regularly.
Fill empty spaces in borders such as summer beds or ornamental vegetable gardens swiss Chard.
Remove dead or damaged growth from deutzia, philadelphus and weigela that have finished flowering, by cutting off a stem joint or leaf.
Thin out fruit on established apple, pear and plum trees to prevent branches from breaking under the weight of the fruit and encourage remaining fruit to grow larger.
Dig up spent tulip and hyacinth bulbs and store them in a cool, dark shed until they are ready for re-planting in the autumn.
Water and feed containers and hanging baskets regularly.
Mow the lawn regularly.
july
Chop lavender and statice to dry.
Make provisions if you’re going away on your summer holidays – ask family, friends and neighbors to water the garden for you. Put all the pots together in a shady spot, deadhead everything, water well and hope for the best.
Fill waterers for wildlife, bird baths and other containers so they can drink water during drought.
Prune roses to bloom only once each year after they have finished blooming.
Propagate some of your favorite shrubs using semi-ripe cuttings. Suitable candidates include ceanothus, lavender, skimmia, escalonia and photinia.
Keep tomatoes, brinjals and peppers well watered and fed with liquid high-potash fertilizer.
august
Collect seeds from plants you want to propagate, including sweet peas, nigella, poppies and nasturtiums.
Plant autumn-flowering bulbs including autumn crocus, Sternbergia and colchicum.
If you come across a scattered pile of dried-up container bedding plants when you return from vacation that you can’t save, remove them and focus on autumn and winter planting displays.
Take cuttings from pelargoniums, fuchsias and other tender perennials.
Collect diseased fallen leaves from under roses as debris that have dark spots, mold or rust on them, if you do not remove them you may have problems next year.
Remove some leaves from tomato plants so the fruits can get sunlight to ripen.
Increasing water level in ponds.
September
Install spring bulbs.
Lift and divide clumps of crowded perennials that have finished flowering and replant them, giving you smaller but more vigorous new plants.
Thin out aquatic plants and cover your pond with a net to prevent leaves from falling off.
Create a new compost pile. Clearing out the garden in autumn will give you plenty of old plant material to start with.
Give the lawn a boost by removing moss and weeds and aerating it.
Keep harvesting crops, including zucchini, green beans, tomatoes, sweetcorn, cabbage, autumn cauliflower and onions, and work out how you’ll preserve your glutes, whether it’s freezing, pickling or making passata.
october
Collect fall leaves and create leaf mold, a great way to improve soil texture or can be used as mulch. Place them in garbage bags with holes for ventilation and put them out of the way for a year, by which time they will have turned into a black, crumbly mass.
Place a bunch of mint or parsley on the windowsill to bring indoors as an herb.
Dried attractive seed heads such as eryngium and teasel to use in indoor decorations.
Pick and store summer bulbs, including cannas and gladioli.
Reseed any bare spots that have developed on your lawn.
november
Clean up – but not too much. Leave some of the old stems and leaves on to provide protection for the seeds from insects and birds over the winter.
Plant tulip bulbs. November is the best month for them, as cool soil helps prevent the fungal disease tulip fire.
Give newly planted shrubs and trees some protection from the elements, even if it’s just a layer of horticultural fleece.
Wrap containers in hessian, fleece or other insulating material to keep the plants from freezing.
Pick up dahlias and store them in a cool, dark, dry place.
Check stored fruits and vegetables for signs of disease.
December
Plant a few containers for winter color, including plants like skimmia, hellebores, winter-flowering heather and cyclamen coum.
Cut leaves, berries and winter flowers to make your own Christmas garland.
Harvest Brussels sprouts, parsnips and leeks for Christmas dinner.