When to begin work

It’s always a dilemma to know when is the best time to start tidying up in the garden after a long cold winter. You don’t want to be too hasty as you might damage the inhabitants of your garden who do the most good  - the insects, the pollinators and the ladybirds for example. They take refuge in soil, trees, plant stems, in leaf litter, beneath stones, some in a semi-dormant state. They don’t really want to be disturbed until the soil has warmed up a bit.
Later on it can be a fine balance feeling that you are keeping the stronger plants ‘under control’ whilst allowing other beautiful plants enough space to grow and thrive.
So it is tempting to start too early!
Fingers crossed for this year that we will get that balance right and not feel constantly on the back foot and pressurised !
We started the year by improving our ‘dead hedge’, which often looks more alive then dead!

A key principle of forest gardens is to keep the valuable nutrients within the garden so that any dying plant material will benefit future plants. A tall ‘compost heap ‘ is created - the twigs, leaves and plant material quickly starts to break down, creating a refuge for bugs and a habitat for small mammals, birds and even hedgehogs. To tidy up our dead hedge, we created a woven wall of lime prunings from the Secret Garden, which received definite thumbs up from visitors.
We also finally dug up our Jerusalem artichokes - a little late but they were unharmed and several people rated them highly as a roasted vegetable. They are very good for your gut if your digestion is willing!