What to do in the garden in January.

It may seem that there is not much to do in the garden at this time of year, but when the ground is not frozen it can be dug in preparation for the sowing and planting to come. Compost can still be spread on the soil to rot down and let the worms incorporate into the soil and it is also a good idea to spread leaf mould or dry fallen leaves onto beds that are prepared and waiting for Spring.

Now is also a good time to plan what you will grow throughout the year to come and how you will be rotating your crops.

The Garden Organic website explains how to make compost and also provides a useful reminder of all the things you can be doing in the garden each month. Members can access a guide to crop rotation, but the RHS guide crop rotation is available to everyone.

On mild days onion sets and garlic can be planted and broad bean and pea seed can be sown. I decided on Autumn planting onions, which I put in in September, and will wait till the Spring before planting any more. This was just as well as I was unwell for a couple of months after that. It turned out I was anaemic, but once the iron tablets started working I got back to normal fairly quickly. However, with all the Christmas preparations I only managed to sow my broad seed on 27^th December.

I didn't look for garlic soon enough and haven't been able to find any, so am now waiting for the Spring planting garlic to come in. I would like to plant it soon as I'm told it does better if it endures a cold spell to begin with. Last year I waited until February and it didn't do very well.