This Month in Your Garden - December

 "It is the middle of December. The nights are longer, the weather is colder, winter comes." Selena Fox

Winter for us officially begins on the 1st of December and by the middle of the month, as the festivities approach, there's probably little time to contemplate the garden. Besides, you will have already finished pruning roses, planting containers for winter flowering colour and putting in evergreen shrubs in borders as architectural statements. 

The Lawncare Guide - December

Neat and trim but not too short, thank you

While it is nicer to see the lawn through the winter neatly cut, it should not be manicured within an inch of its life. If the grass has still been growing through an unseasonably warm November, it may need that last cut in December, but not too short. The height of winter cut should be 20 to 25 mm for a leisure lawn, 25 mm + for a utility lawn, and 12 to 18 mm for an ornamental lawn. That will help the grass develop a good root system to combat wear. 

Lawn Care: Questions & Answers

Q. We have small, dead patches of grass with a whitish, fluffy ring on the outer edges and they seem to be joining up. What is this?

The Vegetable Plot - December

Chilli in winter

It's surprising what vegetables you can grow in December. Sowing seed now and then again in spring will extend your harvesting season. You might sow outside, directly in the ground or in heated propagators. Chilli peppers and aubergines can be sown any time of the year but you will need a heated propagator and grow lamp to get them going. Winter sown broad beans will give you an early crop in May. At the moment, it is mild enough in most regions to sow seed outdoors where they can germinate in about two weeks. Then they remain dormant until spring brings a rise in temperatures.

The Big Glut - December

Creamy chard, squash and parmesan tart

From BBC Good Food

Ingredients

• 400g acorn or butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and cut into 2-3cm slices
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• ½ bunch of thyme, leaves picked, plus a few sprigs to serve
• 1 tbsp butter
• 5 banana shallots, thinly sliced
• 2 tsp light brown soft sugar
• 1 tbsp sherry vinegar
• 400g chard, leaves chopped (reserve the stem to use in soups or stews)
• 40g parmesan or vegetarian alternative, grated
• 100g mascarpone
• 30g blanched hazelnuts, roughly chopped
• chicory salad, to serve