ONE of the reasons that I switched careers to take up horticulture as a profession (apart from my love of gardening of course) was that I no longer wanted to work shifts, weekends and holidays (which is almost 'de rigueur' in the leisure industry).

Being a teacher and trainer as well usually implies that you don't have to be at your place of work whilst there are no 'bodies' there to supervise.

In addition, Natures World is always shut to the public for the two week period, which means that there have been no visitors to open up for. So, you would have thought that I would have been lolling around on the sofa at home, gently digesting my festive excesses.

But not so. We have become victims of our own successes. Traditionally our large greenhouse and polytunnels get cleaned and sterilised over the winter and remain empty until early spring.

This time we decided to get a head start on the year's crops and keep them stocked with herbs, salads, winter vegetables and the odd perennial.

The hot half of the old glass house is packed to bursting point with Mediterranean herbs such as basil and coriander. The polytunnels are brim full of rocket, beetroot, leeks and spinach.

It is heartening and exiting keeping the home produce going when everything else in the garden has succumbed to the winter chills or died back down to nothing.

The only snag is that even though it is winter and it is cold outside, the plants growing under cover need a regular and constant supply of water. It is usually one of the tasks that the trainees fight over as it is takes place in the warmest locations, and doesn't involve much physical effort.

However, during the holidays there is no one left to undertake the watering, so this year I have had to go into work over the Christmas holidays to do it myself.

The greenhouse is easy to do, it just involves a bit of patience making sure that the seedlings don't get drowned by trying to hurry.

The polytunnels have proved a little more difficult. There are five of them, large ones at that, and they are all serviced by one tap, and a very long hose pipe.

We gave the trainees a bit of a party on the last working day, so they may have had other things on their mind, but whoever was in charge of the watering that day forgot to roll the hosepipe back under cover of the polytunnels.

Well, with the plummeting temperatures the pipes have completely frozen over and become unusable.

I did try walking along them in an attempt to crunch and shift the icy blockages, but to no avail.

Mind you, the tap itself has been frozen solid for most of the week, so even if the hosepipe had been safely reeled away it may not have been possible to do any watering.

Luckily we don't grow any tender outdoor plants at Natures World.

Anything there has to be hardy and able to grow with minimum attention, unlike the geese and ducks, which do need some assistance when things freeze over. I have had great pleasure this week in smashing up the ice on their pond.

They need the water to preen and drink; to sift out bits of nutrients, and as a place of refuge and safety from the resident fox. The pond isn't an ornamental one, with cultivated plants growing in it or a wildlife pond, so there is no harm in thumping the ice. There are no delicate fish to shock.

Immediately after the 'smashing' spree, the wild ducks fly in from miles around, shortly followed by flocks of sparrows, blackbirds and robins.

The moorhens slink in quietly a bit later on and the pheasants and partridge only once the coast is clear.

People generally remember to put food out for the birds during bad weather, but rarely remember to give them a good supply of drinking and bathing water. Without this they can very soon perish.

So, even though I have had to drag myself into work whilst the rest of the world is partying away in the comforts of their warm homes, I have had quite an enjoyable and fun-packed time.

I have certainly done my bit for our feathered friends, and won't just yet be looking for another change of career.

JOBS THIS WEEK

* Prune passionflower

Outdoor passionflowers will have been set back by the cold weather. Any fruit will have finished growing, and the whole plant will be looking a little straggly. Prune the whole plant back to a main framework, and it will sprout out again in the spring.

* Dig over soil around fruit bushes

Gently fork over the soil at the base of fruit bushes and canes. This will bring to the surface any chafer grubs lurking in the ground. The birds will pick them off and prevent them from destroying your plants.

* Sow onion seeds

If you have a greenhouse you can start sowing onion seeds in trays ready for late summer cropping. Sprinkle them onto a tray full of fine, moist compost and cover with a dusting of sieved compost. Water again and cover with a sheet of glass or polythene. When they have produced their first long leaves they can be pricked out into individual pots. Harden them off gradually throughout March and plant outside in April.

POST SCRIPT

For more horticultural chat, tips and answers, tune into 'Ask about Gardening' every Sunday from 12-2pm on BBC Radio Cleveland, 95FM presented by Brigid Press and Tim Ellingford.

Published: 03/01/2004