Few people want to think about their gardens at this time of year and really it is a great time to take a break. You may want to keep an eye on one or two things, but there’s no need to go out digging, pruning and planting unless that’s your immediate priority. Most jobs will wait a few weeks until the weather has done its winter worst.

It’s always good to walk around and look at the garden, in case there’s a broken branch that needs cutting or a burst water pipe. You may find other small tasks, or you can enjoy the luxury of not having to do too much.

Keep an eye on stores

It is always worth looking over your stored fruit and vegetables. Remove any soft onions or garlic and remove any rotting potatoes before problems spread. Check pumpkins and root vegetables to make sure all are sound; apples will need using soon before they soften.

If stored vegetables show signs of disease, it is safest not to put them on the compost heap. Some disease spores can survive for many years, to infect future crops, and compost isn’t likely to heat enough at this time of year to kill them off.

It’s worth looking at jars of jam, chutney and pickles. If there’s mould in the jar, you know that the seal isn’t airtight.

Most things in the freezer should be fine, but they don’t keep in top condition for ever. Do use them up over the next few months and certainly before new crops start to arrive next year.

Check stored vegetables to avoid problems

A touch of frost

I’m always happy to have a few hard winter frosts. This means that you need to remove any remaining sorry-looking peppers and tomatoes from the polytunnel and greenhouse. On the upside, a frost is a good way to reduce the number of disease spores and pests.

Don’t treasure any wilting mouldy plants. Get them out of the garden and let frost kill off spores lying on the ground. New Zealand flatworm numbers are knocked back by a hard winter and aphids don’t do well at sub-zero temperatures.

You do need to protect outdoor taps and pipe joints. Water expands as it freezes and can push joints apart or crack plastic fittings. You may have a flood when everything thaws again. Wind a few layers of bubble wrap around vulnerable points and leave these in place until things warm up again.

Harvest and enjoy cauliflowers

Winter cauliflowers can be at their best now. Use them once good heads form and don’t leave them to stand in the ground. Don’t grow too many at one sowing; the heads come ready all around the same time and they don’t last too long. Lovely white curds can start to turn brown after a couple of weeks outdoors and there’s a limit to how many cauliflowers anyone can eat in that time frame. Cut heads will keep for a week or two in the bottom of the fridge.

You can cover the curds to keep them white for longer, but this provides an even better hiding place for slugs, earwigs and woodlice. Plants grown in a greenhouse, or polytunnel, are easier to look after and they tend not to be as full of pests. Submerge cut cauliflowers in a pan of cold water until the unwanted guests move out.

Harvest cauliflowers while at their best

A bit of colour

There are a few reliable plants that flower in winter. Schizostylis, also called Kaffir Lily, is a hardy plant that survives down to -10C. It produces stems of flowers on the pink/red spectrum and flowers open further up as lower ones fade.

The plant grows stems from rhizomes, which spread to form large clumps. You can propagate by digging up a few rhizomes in mid-to-late spring and planting them in a new spot. You can also buy packs of rhizomes from plant suppliers. These may be a little dry in the pack and can benefit from soaking for a couple of hours before you put them in the ground. Plants may not flower in the first year.

Established plants flower from late autumn through January depending on winter weather. Cut stems can bring a bit of colour into the house. Cut flowering stems back when flowering is finished.

Some lovely winter colour from Schizostylis

House plants

These make lovely presents, but they need some care if you buy them a while before you want to give them away. Many plants are sitting in dry soil and you need to water them well. Slip any packaging off and stand in a tray of water so compost is dampened from the bottom up. Nip off any faded leaves and flowers and check for hidden pests. You could also write out a ‘care card’ to give with the gift.