General winter tasks

Just because the garden is largely dormant, this does not mean that there is nothing to do once your preparatory tasks are complete.
The gardening lull in winter offers the ideal opportunity to clean up the garden shed and store all your equipment neatly. You can also use this time to oil and sharpen the blades of saws, pruners, cylinder lawn mowers and garden knives.
Preparing for winter (left) Frost-tender plants will need (o be well wrapped in winter to prevent frost damage. Wrap container-grown plants arid their pots in burlap or bubble wrap. Cover the crowns of tender perennials with straw.
SHARPENING A KNIFE
Knives used for gardening are ideal for a whole range of tasks from taking cuttings to cutting string. Whatever they are used for, the blades should always be kept very sharp.
Use a moistened oil stone to sharpen your knife. Hold the blade at an angle of 25 degrees and push it gently along the oil stone until it is sharp. Only the factory-sharpened edge needs to be treated in this way.