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Gardening diary - our weekly guide and topical tips for your English country garden and allotment.

Week 51 December 16th - December 23rd

This week you are likely to be more involved with your Christmas tree than anything in the garden.

However if you do get out the allotment the traditional time for planting shallots is the shortest day December 21st - harvesting on the longest day June 21st although these dates don't appear to be critical and are often impossible due to winter weather conditions. It's more important to plant in frost free soil, starting as early as November if you wish, and harvesting when the bulbs are totally dry. The best time for harvesting seems to depend on variety as much as planting time.

This weeks blog - what I did in the allotment this week