It's easy, this time of year, to remain agnòstic about plants and gardening preferring the pace and peace of indoor life, away from the outdoor winter harshness. The reality is we can have some fine January days, maybe slightly damp and cool underfoot, but fine enough to do some gardening tasks, and certainly so in our pot filled garden space.
What do you do with them, I hear you say.
Well, the first port of call is to consider what we are asking of the plants. To continue to grow in a healthy fashion, adorning their branches and stems in abundance, with a limited root resource. Continued sustenance for all of us to thrive is a must, and plants are no different. The need for balanced nutrients, both macro and micro, in a healthy growing medium will ensure good growth through the growing seasons, with only a sprinkling or splash of additional booster feeds.
"Continued sustenance for all of us to thrive is a must, and plants are no different."
To this end, the primary base growing medium we use is topsoil, purchased in bags from reputable establishments, to which various items and materials are added. The general recipe used for our potting mix for established plants is one third topsoil, and two thirds our own homemade compost, both from the composter and older recycled compost from previous years growing. The pre used compost we have is typically stored over winter in large covered containers, to which some manure is blended and added. This combination makes for a fine base mix for potting, or potting on, or top dressing the bigger plants. From a nutrient perspective, the addition of some organic bone meal and/ or seaweed fertilisers (depending on what is to hand), ensure those slow released micro nutrients are added, and in the growing seasons, some quicker releasing food, to finish out the mix. There are variations of our own potting mix, depending on need and time of year. If the mix is purely for top dressing established plants in spring, the level of quick releasing fertiliser is increased, allowing for more nutrients to wash trough the older compost. If we are washing roots of plants almost completely clean and re potting, the level of fertiliser and organic matter is much reduced, minimising the risk of scorching or burning those precious root systems, maybe adding instead some fine grit or granite sand to open out the drainage of the compost.
For seed sowing, we use some pre-purchase seed compost, the John Innes mix being my preferred one to use, sometimes with added pearlite, especially for the finer seeds whose roots will be very small and tender when they first emerge.
'nice tea and cake, the perfect reward for these January days!'
We do have a heated small propagator, gifted to me many moons ago by a good friend, and although I've intended to upgrade it over they years, honestly, it more than suffices for our gardening needs, once we are clever about what we do and when. The first seeds going in this year are the sweet peppers, as the benefit from a nice long sprouting and growing period in this area, before they start to flower and fruit. We will do other seeds too, where little or no heat is required, even in January, opting instead to bring our seed compost indoors for some days before sowing to remove the outdoors winter chill from it.
Finally, what ever you choose to do this month, do after yourselves, stay warm when needed, and ensure to take time for yourself to plan for the gardening year ahead.
