Garden Calendar

In January, the garden should be covered with a blanket of snow...

In January, the garden should be covered with a blanket of snow. It insulates plant roots and prevents the soil from drying out. But what if there's no snow? And what can you do in the garden during the coldest month of the year?

January in the garden without snow

If there's no snow cover in January, plants need protection from frost and wind. Cover perennial beds with spruce branches, leaves, or straw. Pay special attention to sensitive plants like roses, lavender, or ornamental grasses.

Another important task is watering evergreen plants. Conifers, rhododendrons, and other evergreens continue to transpire even in winter. If the soil is frozen and there's no precipitation, they can dry out. Water them on frost-free days.

What to do in the garden in January

January is the ideal time for planning the growing season. Review seed catalogs, choose varieties for your vegetable garden and flowerbeds, and consider crop rotation.

Other activities you can do:

Pruning fruit trees – on frost-free days, you can prune apple and pear trees
Checking stored vegetables and bulbs – remove any damaged pieces
Cleaning and maintaining tools – sharpen blades, oil handles
Feeding birds – they help control pests in the garden
Checking tree wraps – protect young trees from frost cracks

Starting seeds in January

Some vegetable and flower crops can already be sown in January for transplanting. These include:

Peppers and chili peppers – need a long growing season
Eggplant – also benefits from early sowing
Annual flowers – petunias, begonias, pelargoniums
Leeks – for spring planting

For successful germination, you'll need quality substrate, adequate lighting (grow lights), and optimal temperature around 20-25°C.

Greenhouse in January

If you have a heated greenhouse, you can grow fresh vegetables even in winter. Lettuce, spinach, Asian greens, and radishes tolerate lower temperatures well.

Don't forget about ventilation – even in winter, it's important to air out the greenhouse on sunny days to prevent fungal diseases.

January is a time for rest and planning

Although there's less work in the garden in January, it's an important period for preparation and planning. Take advantage of the quiet winter months to learn about new growing methods, choose seeds and plants, and prepare for the upcoming season. A well-planned garden is half the success!

In January, the garden should be covered with a blanket of snow, but with the current weather patterns, this is not at all certain. A good snowfall will protect plants against frost, and the melting snow will provide plants with moisture. On the other hand, snow must be regularly removed and shaken off from trees to prevent branches from breaking under its weight. Now the care with which gardeners prepared their garden for winter will show - well-tied trees hold much less snow on their branches than those left untied. If there is no snow in January, don't forget to provide moisture to plants during frost-free periods to prevent them from drying out.

What Seeds to Sow in January?

It may seem that winter is in full swing and therefore nothing can be sown, but the opposite is true. In January, it's possible to start sowing many types of seeds. Sowing equipment placed on windowsills is most commonly used for sowing. A luxurious convenience for sowing these types of plants intended for forcing is using a mini greenhouse or propagator. In this equipment, optimal conditions for growing young seedlings can be easily maintained.

seeds of plants suitable for sowing in January

In January, it's high time for sowing seeds of certain plant species

In a mini greenhouse or sowing tray, you can sow in January, for example, celeriac varieties Maxim and Asterix, early cauliflower varieties, salad cucumbers intended for growing in a polytunnel. Varieties suitable for sowing already during January include, for example, Twenty F1, Saturn F1, Vanda F1. In your sowing equipment, also plant seeds of peppers intended for forcing such as varieties Andrea, Sandra, Oda, Paradise F1, or Bendigo. You can also plant cordon tomatoes intended for greenhouse cultivation, summer leeks, head lettuce for forcing, and leaf lettuce for harvesting such as the Dubáček variety. There are plenty of plants that can be sown in January, but there is a shortage of space on windowsills.

What Garden Tasks Not to Forget in January?

If snow has fallen, there's not much that can be done in the garden - the main activity is constantly shoveling snow and clearing paths. In case there's no snow in January, it's possible to carry out thinning of ornamental trees, remove wild shoots and take cuttings. Wildlife shouldn't be able to get into well-secured gardens, but if they did manage to get in and damaged some trees, treat them with grafting wax and improve the level of tree protection.

An activity that shouldn't be forgotten in January is repairing garden tools and making a shopping list for new equipment. It's also worthwhile studying specialist literature, planning beds for the next season and, most importantly, gathering ideas for various improvements. When else can you sit comfortably in an armchair and dream about the possibilities of beautifying and enhancing your own garden?

In January, you'll have plenty of time for tool repairs and thinking about various improvements to your kingdom.

Fighting Diseases and Pests is Necessary All Year Round - What to Do in January?

Ideally, pests in the garden should freeze during January frosts, but unfortunately this doesn't always happen. In January, the fight is more against diseases and pests on indoor plants and on plants, tubers and bulbs stored in winter quarters. In January, regularly check indoor plants to see if they've been attacked by mealybugs, which you can recognize by white fluff on the leaves. Mealybugs can be eliminated mechanically with a cotton swab dipped in alcohol; for larger infestations, it's more advantageous to use spray treatment. During January, also check bulbs and tubers overwintering in the cellar to see if they're rotting or drying out too much. Remove rotten parts in time. In January, you have plenty of time to study new developments in disease and pest control, so you'll have an advantage over unwanted guests during the season.

Dedicate Time to Ornamental Plants in January Too.

January is a month when the decoration in the garden is mainly provided by a blanket of snow, under which all overwintering ornamental plants are hidden. Plants are relatively safe under snow; during hard frosts, check whether you secured them thoroughly against frost in autumn, and improve the insulation if necessary. During dry periods, water rhododendrons and azaleas, which are most sensitive to lack of moisture in winter. In January, you can sow seeds of zonal pelargoniums. It's high time to start thinking about buying seeds for other ornamental plants.

What to Do with Indoor Plants During January?

Taking care of indoor plants in January is simple - just water them occasionally and check whether they are affected by diseases and pests. If you notice that a plant has started stretching (it has very weak growth in light green colour), try to provide it with more light and slightly reduce the temperature.

Even Cacti and Succulents Follow the Calendar - What Benefits Them in January?

Adult cacti should be overwintered in January and "sleep" in a cool location, where they can do completely without water. Give succulents a little water occasionally. In the cacti and succulents calendar, January is the beginning of the seed sowing period. Sowing cacti and succulents is not much more complicated than sowing other seeds. Sow cactus seeds in permeable substrate, preferably pre-sterilised at high temperature (e.g. by baking in the oven), this way you will destroy mould spores that could damage young seedlings. Pour the prepared soil into a dish or small pots and spread the seeds evenly on the surface. Press them in gently and water. Cover the dish with a lid, place the pots in a mini greenhouse, for example, so that the sowing has constant moisture and temperature. The seeds should start germinating in about a week. Water the sowing regularly, it must not dry out nor should you overwater it. Check whether any seedlings have started to go mouldy. Remove affected seedlings in time. In case of mould occurrence, let the sowing dry out a little - ventilate it.

What Else Is Good to Know in January?

A snow blanket in the garden is beautiful, but it makes life very difficult for birds, who cannot get through it to food. For feeding them in winter, the birds will reward you during the season by eliminating various pests and with their singing. The best food for birds is sunflower and other oil-rich seeds. Avoid poppy seeds and leftover biscuits, as these could harm the birds rather than help them.