Picking leaf litter for mulch is a valuable winter task

As we draw to the end of the calendar year I always reflect (and can’t help comparing) the previous season. This has undoubtedly been a rain heavy spring and summer, but the result has been the best growing conditions we’ve experienced since we started the nursery garden back in 2011.

True, the post-work barbecues have been in short supply this year but the trade-off has been verdant, fresh growth from the long-established perennials and water thirsty shrubs and trees especially when compared to the dry periods in 2023 when weeks without rain left our main borders looking parched and less than convincing.

Don’t get me wrong, if this coming season wishes to throw some warmth and sunshine our way, I won’t stand in its way…

Gardening columnists and the multitudes of gardening books will often suggest that December is the month when you curl up in front of the fire (assuming you have one, I guess the radiator might have to do for some of us) and trawl through the catalogues ordering your seed for sowing in the new year, a perfectly reasonable thing to suggest but realistically that’s not going to take all month.

I love to be outside whenever I can. We have a stunning piece of largely deciduous woodland that skirts the boundary of our two-acre site and this month it sheds an impressive quantity of material which needs to be constantly harvested and gathered to keep the paths and hard surfaces clear.

Much of this leaf litter is a precious resource that we add to our compost heaps and when, after some time, it has broken down, the resulting material can be used to mulch trees and shrubs in the garden.

In some instances, the leaves can be raked or leaf blown directly onto borders to act as a mulch. This isn’t a widely adopted technique although some high-profile gardens have been doing it for many years now. It’s worth giving serious consideration especially if you have large areas to manage.

This same woodland is also a rich source of material for making natural decorations to use at home for Christmas and the New Year. I love to use the foliage and dark purple/black fruits of our native ivy (Hedera helix) in wreaths, sometimes incorporated amongst the foliage of holly, other dried seed heads and leaves or, often, used by itself.

Simplicity is typically the best approach to creating largely natural decorations. A staple in the Attwood household is to take plain terracotta pots planted with early spring flowering bulbs and dress the tops with moss. These look great on an outdoor windowsill or work well as temporary table centre pieces.

If the soil isn’t too wet this month, borders that we planted with annual flowers and mixed vegetables from this year can be stripped out. In our entrance border/mini potager the spring flowering wallflowers are planted before Christmas to sit alongside the rows of tulips and daffodils that will begin their skyward journey from March onwards.

A simple tip if you intend to get onto a border this month and the ground is on the wet side: lay a sheet of plywood slightly set back from the area you’re going to be working on. This helps to spread your weight, minimising any potential damage to the structure of the soil.

Having cleared any ground, it’s an opportune moment to add some organic matter such as a pre-bagged soil conditioner or your own homemade compost to the soil surface. A prudent move to deliver good results in the new year and give you the opportunity to work off that panettone.