Gardening tips for mid-December

Try planting a tree in December and remember to make the bursary mark properly

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Horticultural aide memoire

No.47: Plant a tree

Dig a round hole comfortably wider and deeper than the tree's root spread. Break up the soil in the bottom with a fork or a pick. Make a cone of soil in the middle and rest the rootball on it. If the tree is a standard, drive in a stake close to the trunk, but without damaging the rootball. Carefully backfill the soil by shovelling, and rest your weight on it to consolidate (but not squash) it as you go. Make sure the nursery mark (you'll see) is at the final soil level. If staked, tie tree to stake. Admire your work.

Country Life
Country Life

Country Life is unlike any other magazine: the only glossy weekly on the newsstand and the only magazine that has been guest-edited by HRH The King not once, but twice. It is a celebration of modern rural life and all its diverse joys and pleasures — that was first published in Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee year. Our eclectic mixture of witty and informative content — from the most up-to-date property news and commentary and a coveted glimpse inside some of the UK's best houses and gardens, to gardening, the arts and interior design, written by experts in their field — still cannot be found in print or online, anywhere else.

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