On the twelth day of Christmas my true love shared with me 12 tips for food growing

Heard on the radio, the third most googled item to buy in the UK in 2020 – compost! Woah, the amount of people that must be getting into their own food growing. If there was one way to build a local resilience to climate change, it is most certainly growing your own food.

Continuing from the festive season to 2021, here is a checklist of 12 vital things to do over winter for your garden!

1) Create a compost heap 

2) Cover the ground 

3) Order your seeds for spring 

4) Winter prune your fruit trees. That is if you have any. If you do not then perhaps consider planting one!

5) Start to sow veggies indoors 

6) Grow winter salads on your window sill 

7) Plant a comfrey patch next to your compost heap 

8) Help Wildlife – go easy on tidying up deadwood and leaf piles that could be home to overwintering hedghogs, frogs and insects 

9) Look after your tools – clean them and store properly; fix the ones that are broken; and sharpen blades on secateurs 

10) Help birds by keeping a regular well stocked feeder, providing a much needed source of food and water  

11) Plant or transplant your trees. Winter is when the trees are in dormancy and are safe to move about

12) Plan your amazing vegetable garden. We use GrowVeg which is great for community gardens and has great tips