Garden Chores by Month: January

Ah, January - a time of the year when it's too cold to garden and you might be wishing for spring to arrive. But that doesn't mean that you should forget about gardening all together. January is a great month to prepare your garden for the upcoming growing season. Here are some tasks you can do this month: 

1. Clean up your Garden Bed: If you didn't clean up your garden bed at the end of last growing season, now is the time to do so. Pull out weeds, rake up debris and dead plant material, and make sure there are no leftover pests or diseases in the soil.

2. Prune Trees & Shrubs: Now is a good time to prune trees and shrubs that may have overgrown during the summer months. Make sure not to prune them back too far - just enough so that they are healthy and don’t become an issue later in the season. 

3. Test Your Soil: Before starting any planting in your garden, it’s important to test your soil pH levels. Doing this early in the year will give you plenty of time to amend any soil deficiencies before planting starts in March or April. 

4. Purchase Seeds: As we get closer to spring, it's best to start thinking about what plants you want to add to your garden this year and purchase those seeds early so they are ready when the planting season begins. This is also a good time to order larger plants like trees or bushes from nurseries since many of them open earlier in the year. 

5. Set Up Raised Beds & Containers: For vegetable gardens or flower beds, setting up raised beds or containers will give your plants better access to nutrients and air circulation – plus, these structures also provide a place for you organize yourself when gardening later on! 

With these tasks done in January, your garden will be prepared for an awesome growing season ahead!