Garden Notes for November 2024.

All apple and pear trees should be pruned this month. Try to form the tree into a ‘wine glass’ shape to allow maximum light into the centre. Remember to long prune tip bearing varieties. Generally cut back ‘leaders’ by about one-third and prune back side growth.

Now is the time to plant bare root roses. There are masses of roses to choose from, but you should find a suitable variety that has been bred by David Austin to suit most gardens. He is the worthy successor to Harry Wheatcroft.

It is not too late to be planting tulips in November, but do it earlier rather than later in the month. If you have a sheltered and well drained plot, now is the time to sow winter broad beans such as Aquadulce. Early broad beans often escape the blackfly attacks on the growth tips of the plant in spring.

If the weather continues to be mild, grass will still be growing, so mow it as necessary as long as the ground is not sodden or frozen. When you have finished, make sure that the mower is cleaned, drain the petrol and store it in a dry place. Ensure that it has an annual service so that it is ready for all the work in the Spring. Clean greenhouses and conservatories with a suitable cleaning agent such as Agralan Citrox.

If you are planning to have a show of hippeastrum (more commonly known as ‘amarylis’), now is the time to pot these large bulbs so that the neck is above the level of the compost (otherwise it will rot and die). The pot should not be more than 2.5cm wider than the bulb itself as they like to be fairly crowded. Remember to stop watering cacti and succulents, except the Christmas cacti, until March next year. Roots of outdoor chrysanthemums should labelled, lifted and put in a cold frame for the winter. If a cold frame is not available they can be kept under the shelter of a wall and protected with garden fleece.

Hardy peas like ‘Feltham First’, ‘Meteor’ and the mangetout ‘Oregon Sugar Pod’ can be sown in an unheated greenhouse in pots so that you can enjoy an early crop next June. Sow broad beans outside in a sunny, free-draining spot.

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