My winter garden. December 2025 - January 2026

Nothing has been done in the garden since mid November. I'm sure things could've been planted. I could be preparing beds, but I'm not that invested. Gardening for me is fun, it's not meant to be a chore and I'm not trying to be self sufficient. Besides, it's not a big garden and I don't have space for heated greenhouses or windowsills indoors that I can grow seedlings on.

I've been enjoying sitting outside in the mornings before going to work either with a cup of tea or coffee, but it's usually dark so I've been making the most of catching some sun on the weekends.

When we had our first floor flat in Monmouth where we stayed when we were visiting the UK, we didn't have a garden, but it was only a short walk from the River Monnow and was such a pretty place to sit with a mug of tea in the mornings. I'd often sit with a blanket wrapped round me on the tips in the winter also.

Sadly after the floods in early December the town suffered badly and the ground floor of the flats were flooded badly. This was a week after the flooding.

Santa stopped by with his snowy boots on Christmas Eve and it took almost 2 weeks for the (icing sugar) snow to disappear.

The real snow came soon enough though on January 3rd. we have raised the front lawn ready to plant a hedge in the spring, but the soil has settled quite a bit so we'll be bringing in more soil that had piled up after building work in the back garden to finish levelling it off once the weather warms up, so we may have to delay the hedge row planting till the early summer, but it'll give the hedge cutting a little longer to establish themselves after they come out from under protection after the winter.

You wouldn't believe this was the same day, later in the afternoon. Just look at that blue sky. There are buds on the fruit trees.

We lost the fleece covering from the Bay Tree while we were away over the New Year, it must've blown over the fence. It seems to be doing ok without the fleece and we've seen many potted Basils without fleeces in various National trust and English Heritage sites.

The cloche and cold frame are doing their job and the herbs are doing well despite the cold.

Parsley, basil, fennel, coriander all of which we've been able to sue throughout the winter months.

Both the memorial roses we were gifted for Stephanie are doing well. Both are in pots. One was in it's 2nd year so ok to keep outside without any cover, one hadn't had chance to harden off so it was advised to cover it and put it in a green house for it's first winter.

Again, more clear blue skies on January 7th, despite warnings of Storm Goretti.

January 8th. After an hours worth of snowfall.

We had a gift from our granddaughter at Christmas of a bulb in a pot. We are now assuming it's a daffodil.

The house plants are doing well. 

As our the cacti we brought back from Dubai that used to grow in our garden. We've kept them small on purpose as it was quite a vicious plant and not suitable to grow out of control in a house where small children come to visit.

One of babies that we've cultivated in the UK.

There are some plants, mainly succulents that were potted up for the winter and left under semi cover, along with some house plants that had seen better days, that actually look like they've survived the coldest winter months, that will probably come back with a little TLC.

How is your garden holding up during the winter?