For your garden....

The first frosts are behind us and the nights have drawn in – winter is on the doorstep. There is still plenty to be done in the garden, however, much of it conveniently warming in nature!

November is really the best month for planting tulips, although the job can still be carried out in December or even early January. Dark purple 'Queen of Night' is a reliable choice, and looks particularly effective planted with pink or purple-flushed cultivars like 'Shirley' or the contrasting shape of peony-flowered varieties like 'Mount Tacoma'.

Continue to cut back fading perennials, lifting and dividing congested clumps before replanting in soil enriched with compost or well-rotted manure.

Dahlias and cannas can be lifted now the first frosts have killed the foliage, with the tubers cleaned and stored in a cool, frost-free place. This labour intensive process can be avoided by protecting the plants in situ with an insulating mulch of compost, bracken or straw, but be prepared for some losses, particularly in the frost-pockets and heavy soil of the weald.

Clear fallen leaves from beds and borders. If you don't mind a bit of untidiness, a 'natural mulch' of leaves won't do any harm around established shrubs and trees, but don't let them accumulate around small or leafy plants. An excellent tool for this job is a rubber rake, which has soft tines to lift leaves without damaging the plants beneath.

Hardy root crops like turnips and parsnips can be left in the ground, where exposure to frost is said to improve their flavour. Some gardeners, however, prefer to lift and store them in a cool, dark place indoors, freeing the ground for digging (and avoiding repeated trips to a cold, wet vegetable patch).

Heavy clay soils benefit from early digging to allow frost, wind and rain to break up the clods. Sandy soils can be dug shortly before sowing in spring, a strategy that may help reduce the leaching of nutrients during winter.

Garlic can be planted at any time over winter, and is very easy to grow given sun and good drainage. On heavy soil try planting the cloves along the top of a small ridge.

Glasshouse

An unheated greenhouse, although perfect for summer crops and borderline-hardy plants, only provides a couple of degrees of frost protection. Even a little heating will dramatically increase the range of plants you can grow, but with the environmental and financial costs of fuel more obvious than ever it's worth doing everything possible to keep consumption down.

• Consider how warm your greenhouse really needs to be. A minimum of 2°C is sufficient to overwinter most tender plants, and will mean your heater is rarely in use.
• Insulation pays for itself in just a few seasons. Areas beneath the staging can be clad with polystyrene sheets, while clear plastic, bubble-wrap or fleece can be used to insulate the glass.
• Install a clear plastic screen to divide the greenhouse into heated and unheated areas. A sheet of clear plastic drawn horizontally between the eaves of the greenhouse will also save you heating the roof space.
• Use a maximum/minimum thermometer to keep an eye on temperatures in. Even thermostatically-controlled heaters tend to need fine-tuning to ensure the correct minimum temperature is maintained without waste.

Ventilation is still important, as fungal diseases like botrytis thrive in still, damp conditions. Take advantage of mild or sunny days to give the greenhouse a thorough airing, but be sure to close vents and doors before temperatures begin to plummet at sunset.

Lawns

Don't let leaves accumulate on the lawn, as yellow patches quickly develop if the turf is deprived of light, weakening the grass and increasing the risk of fungal disease. If your mower collects grass clippings it will also collect leaves, conveniently chopping them up for faster decomposition into crumbly brown leaf mould.

Continue to mow whenever the lawn is growing, but keep the blades high and avoid mowing when frost is forecast.

Nothing smartens up a garden more than neatly cut and trimmed lawn edges, particularly during winter. A spade is fine for a quick tidy up, although a proper half-moon edger and set of edging shears produce the best results.