Winter is one of the best times to plan and prepare your garden for the year ahead.

Below Daniel Suggitt shares his top tips to help you care for your winter wonderland:

•  Clean up your garden and dispose of any clutter While you’re not able to do much planting in the garden, this doesn’t mean that you can’t keep busy. Make sure to regularly sweep any leaves from your patio or decking to prevent slipping. Place the leaves into one big pile to be used as a shelter for hedgehogs and other wildlife. Rake your lawn frequently to prevent moss growth and help the grass establish firmer roots.

• Treat and repair your outdoor furniture Treat your outdoor furniture with varnish or wood oil to help preserve it – untreated wood can peel and rot when it gets wet. Repair broken fence panels and make sure your trellis and climbing structures are solid. Where you can, use covers, your garage or your shed to store garden equipment to prevent it from rusting. Now would also be a good time to sharpen any tools.

• Set up a water butt Invest in a water butt to help you save water. It will collect rainfall over the winter months for you to use on your garden in spring.

• Help your soil recover and rejuvenate Use this time to clear any foliage debris from your plant beds and pots. Once you have your garden looking neat and tidy, add an organic mulch to the top layer of your soil. It will help protect it against hard freezes and will slowly soak down into the depths of the soil – replenishing it with vital nutrients and minerals that your plants need to grow. Our soil conditioning fertiliser can be used on any area of your garden.

• Protect your taps If you have any outdoor taps, be sure to cover them. You can use foam covers or thermal frost jackets to prevent them from freezing, cracking and leaking.

• Top up your feeders Fill up your bird feeders regularly and place them in easy-to-access locations – such tree branches or a stand – so birds can get to them during the winter months to help them survive.

• Replace your potted plants Switch out the plants currently in your pots, containers or hanging baskets for flowers that will add colour to your garden over winter. Some good choices are pansies, cyclamens, polyanthus and winter-flowering daphne. Evergreens and winter bedding plants such as heather are relatively versatile and require little maintenance.

• Save your trees Protect young trees whose trunks are still soft by using tree protectors. This will stop animals from gnawing on the bark and will help trunks develop. Be sure to knock off any heavy snowfall from tree branches to prevent breakages.

• Turn your attention inside If you’re feeling a little blue and miss getting out and about in your garden, why not consider starting a garden indoors? Houseplants are a great way to breathe fresh life into your décor, can boost your mood, clean the air and making your living space feel cosy. Grow fruit and vegetables in pots in the kitchen or start a mini-herb garden in a box on the windowsill. Spider plants, pothos and snake plants are good houseplant choices for beginners – they’re pretty and easy to maintain.

• Think ahead Even if you can’t be out in the garden, you can use this time to design and plan it ready for spring. Think about what flowers you want to grow, and where and how you’re going to plant them. You can even draw up a garden calendar to detail what jobs you need to do every month to keep your garden in tip-top shape.

For more winter gardening ideas or inspiration follow us on Instagram or Facebook @plantgrowuk. Call us on 01953 525001 or email info@plantgrow.co.uk to speak to a member of the team.