1. Dig over any new beds before the winter frosts.
2. Trim back ivy after flowering and fruiting.
3. Reduce ventilation in the greenhouse.
4. Young fruit trees don’t like weeds or grass growing around their stems, so remove them now. Mulching with garden compost or well-rotted manure will keep them protected, as well as feeding the soil around the roots.
5. Once the ground begins to freeze and you have consistent temperatures in the low 20s F, it's time to protect modern hybrid roses from winter's wind and cold.
6. Add to the compost heap but don't disturb if you want to keep your amphibians warm through the winter.
7. Make sure evergreens have a good deep watering before the ground freezes because they continue to transpire, albeit slowly, during the winter.
8. Make preparations for next year by ordering new seeds, repairing and cleaning out sheds and greenhouses.
9. As ground becomes vacant it should be dug over and manure incorporated. Manure incorporated now should be broken down by planting time next spring.
10. Before lighting your bonfire, remember the hedgehog who thinks that the pile of brushwood is his ideal hibernation spot.
11. Check that young trees are well supported with stakes and ties.
12. Clean and put away tools and machinery.
Hither with crystal phials, lovers, come,
And take my tears, which are love's wine,
And try your mistress' tears at home,
For all are false, that taste not just like mine.
Alas ! hearts do not in eyes shine,
Nor can you more judge women's thoughts by tears,
Than by her shadow what she wears.
O perverse sex, where none is true but she,
Who's therefore true, because her truth kills me.
Twickenham Garden
John Donne
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