Winter Gardening Checklist

Mulch garden beds - to protect the plants roots from the cold

Prune Mulberry Tree - early Winter is the best time for this

Liquid fertlise - to strengthen plants against the cold

Create new garden beds 

Dig in compost

Plant seeds every two weeks 

Plan for Spring

Tidy up garden edges

Extend cut flower garden

More indoor plants

Add pot plants to front deck

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Some gardening love on the internet -

A useful resource for what to plant when in Australia.

Top five reasons to garden in Winter.

Ten kitchen gardens to visit before you die.

Sustainable Gardening Australia blog.

Home life Gardening blog.

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What are your Winter gardening plans? 

A cool change

It feels as if the cool nights are here to stay. I have been looking forward to Winter. It's a mild Winter we have here, no snow or frosts, but I love it nonetheless. I'm looking forward to blankets, snuggles, hot water bottles and wool. Clear nights, bare footed dashes to the bathroom and steamy bathroom windows. To Winter vegetables, soup and bottomless hot drinks. Empty beaches, beautiful sunsets and slow mornings. I'm looking forward to finding those patches of warm sunlight during cold days and soaking them up like a cat. I'm also looking forward to our new kitchen being installed this month (hooray!), a family holiday and our tenth wedding anniversary next month. I've come a long way from the twenty one year old bride I once was. 

But she loved Winter too.

Things I love about Winter

The warmth of the oven spreading throughout the house

Biscuits straight out of that oven

Dressing the furniture with blankets

And even more blankets for movie watching

Camellias, always camellias

Baby bonnets and rosy cheeks

Staying in bed with the two little ones as long as possible each morning

The scent of the neighbours fire carried on the breeze each night

Going to bed early to read a book and falling asleep with the light on

The comforting grey of rainy cold days that reminds you to slow down, reconsider what must be done and what can wait, and gives you permission to read or knit or day dream

What do you love about Winter?

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Hello Winter.

I have really noticed you lately, especially in the mornings and evening.

Cold noses, cold fingers and slippered feet.

Cold water running so much longer before the hot kicks in.

The steam when I boil the kettle.

Porridge, brown sugar and warm milk.

The search for the perfect soup.

I have noticed too that the red leaves little the ground now, the vine waiting on the fence.

The peach tree has a few confused flowers.

I do love you Winter.

I love how you make blankets and cardigans so appealing.

I love how a hug becomes a snuggle when it's cold.

I love how the throw on the lounge becomes a blanket now too.

Despite some warm days, it feels like Winter is really here and I am looking forward to more snuggling, more cardigan wearing and more hot food.

What do you enjoy about Winter?

It's so hard to say goodbye...

Last night I rocked the baby in the pine chair, nursing him and gently stroking his soft, silky hair. I listened to the rain on the roof. Big drops made a hollow sound as they fell upon the metal of the patio roof.

Leaves rustled in the wind. Puddles formed.

Last night, after putting the baby back to bed, I fell asleep listening to the drip-drop of a small leak in the down pipe and hoped the rain would stay awhile.

This morning the sky was grey, over cast, cloudy. The grass smelt wet and fresh, the air was cool. I pulled on jeans and a cardigan.

I made coffee and ate Anzac biscuits baked last night. I started knitting a tiny scary for a small toy. The baby ate a banana and crawled after the cat with his banana hands sticky and sweet.

Soon, somewhere else, the first lilac will bloom. The first swallow will arrive.

I looked at the sky and bid Winter my farewell and welcomed Spring.