Tele gardening writer George Irvine on winter wildlife help

As gardeners we must try and bear all this in mind as we prepare for winter and keep everything going right past the shortest day and into the new year.

Not only are plants important to the gardener, but other factors such as soil need our attention and every effort to keep our gardens a haven for wildlife.

The supply of food is very important and with the populations of caterpillars, insects and slugs and snails diminishing, there is less and less food to go round.

Additionally small animals storing food to keep them sustained as they go into hibernation means there is even less available.

Hedgehogs hibernate for much of the winter and are known to store food to keep them sustained over the colder weather. Certain birds also build their nests and shelter there for the winter and have their young chicks with them.

Bug hotels are a great help to insects and other small creatures during winter. (Image: Seema Miah/Unsplash.com) Log piles are useful for providing shelter for small animals and often creating a bug hotel will help provide insects and bugs on which small animals may feed.

Fallen apples are best left lying on the ground as some of these will provide food for animals during the winter months.

House plants help to purify air

Modern household furniture contains a lot of synthetic material which can lead to a build-up of toxins even without the synthetic material burning or catching fire.

Trace quantities of chemicals such as xylene and toluene can often be found in the atmosphere in the home, especially now that most homes are centrally heated.

House palm plants are ideal for absorbing toxic chemicals in the home. (Image: Erwan Hesry/Unsplash.com)

There are certain house plants that are good for adsorbing these chemicals and examples of these plants are certain of the palm species.

These plants are ideal house plants and apart from making the home decorative they perform these additional benefits.

Gardening talk next week

The next gardening talk organised by Gourock Horticultural Society takes place at Cardwell Garden Centre on Tuesday, October 22, commencing at 2pm.

The last meeting saw a number of new faces attending and most of them are keen to come again and enjoy the group.

This coming meeting will take the form of members asking questions and these are usually popular with everyone. Any reader wishing to attend will be warmly welcome and they can bring a friend with them.

The meeting lasts about an hour and there will be information available on future events.

Any reader wishing further information should telephone 01475 633422.

A look around the vegetable garden

Some gardeners have experienced problems getting tomatoes to ripen this year. Others have had some luck but there is little chance of the fruits ripening now.

Any tomatoes still to ripen can be picked and wrapped in newspaper and stored in a drawer and kept there and checked regularly. When they seem ripe enough to use, you can eat them or make them into chutney.

Old crowns of rhubarb can be lifted out of the ground and left on top of the soil so that the frost can get to them. The crowns can be split in two and be planted in a few weeks or so.

Old rhubarb crowns can be left on top of the soil as autumn turns to winter. (Image: Jonathan Kemper/Unsplash.com) New rhubarb crowns can be purchased and planted any time. There are species of rhubarb that will crop about ten months of the year, and this is becoming quite popular in recent years.

Now is the time to plant potatoes for Christmas - one popular variety being Charlotte - and you can grow them in a container or bag, placing the bag or container in the greenhouse. Enjoy them with your turkey!

Sprouts growing in the vegetable patch need to be firmed into the soil if you want the sprouts to be nice and firm and tight. Onions which are in storage should be inspected rom time to time, and the same applies with garlic bulbs.

Winter cabbage or savoy are best covered with a horticultural fleece to prevent the birds pecking at the greens.

Leeks will continue to grow through the winter and will often last until spring unless you use some for the winter broth and stews.

Lettuces can be grown indoors on your windowsill during the colder months. (Image: Erda Estremera/Unsplash.com)

Seeds of salad greens can be sown in trays on the window ledge, sowing just a few seeds to give you enough for a sandwich. Greens such as lettuce and rocket and similar are good examples for quick growing.

Talking about roses

Roses bushes can be bought in pots at any time of the year and can be planted into the ground,.

As winter approaches, it is best to plant them as soon as possible while the soil is still relatively warm. Leaving planting until the soil is colder is not a good idea.

Once the cold weather comes along, it is worth planting bare-rooted roses; these are usually obtainable from mail order catalogues from November onwards.

Bare-rooted roses can be planted during the winter months. (Image: ameenfahmy/Unsplash.com) If you opt to order bare-rooted roses, heel them into the ground or place the bag on top the soil for a few days until you are ready to plant them.

Some other plants are available as bare rooted types, though I would suggest that you read the instructions carefully which come from the grower.

Protecting peppers and chilli

Certain chilli plants and peppers need to be protected if you want them to ripen in a reasonable time.

Chilli takes longer to ripen; the hotter the chilli then the longer it will take to ripen.

Chilli and pepper plants take a little more care during winter. (Image: Jeppe Vadgaard/Unsplash.com) Much the same rule applies to peppers; the longer they are left then the more the colours will change from green to red, and you may need to put them in the greenhouse and apply some heat.

Peppers are good with salads or they can be used to create a tasty red pepper soup.