Broad Street The month's
Gardening Column
by L D Prior

          
Of all the wildlife-friendly things you can do in the garden, this is the easiest: instead of cutting your flower borders back, neat and tidy, in late Autumn, just leave the dead stems all Winter. There are three reasons why this is a good idea: first, it helps protect the crown of a plant from frost (after all, it's what happens in nature).

Second, it leaves seed heads for birds to pick through. Third, leaving dead stems uncut until early Spring creates overwintering homes for beneficial garden creatures such as lacewings and ladybirds. That way you have a healthy starter population the following Spring.

If you can find the space, it's tremendously helpful to leave an unkempt wild area in the garden. It's an all-too-rare garden habitat, and one that benefits many shy animals.

Apple and pear trees should be pruned every Winter to ensure a good crop of fruit the following season. Pruning is not difficult and the aim is to create an open goblet shape with a framework of about five main branches. Start by removing crossing, rubbing, weak, dead, diseased, damaged and dying branches. Keep the centre of the tree open by removing larger branches with a sharp pruning saw. If several large branches need to be removed, spread the work over two or three winters as very hard pruning encourages even more vigorous growth.

You need to be aware as to whether your apple tree is spur or a tip bearer, most are spur bearers. On spur bearing apples shorten the previous year's growth on each main branch by about one third to a bud facing in the required direction. Cut back any young laterals growing from the main framework to five or six buds.

For tip bearers prune the previous year's growth on each main branch and the most vigorous laterals to the first strong bud. Leave unpruned laterals less than 30cm (1ft) long. Cut back a proportion of older fruited wood to a young shoot or leaf bud to reduce congestion.