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It can feel like the end of the year for gardening when we approach the winter months, the flowers of summer are a distant memory and the rain and cold are here to stay until further notice. However, if you’re an avid gardener it’s not all doom and gloom as there is still much to be done. Here are a few ideas and tips to keep you going through the winter.

CLEAR UP AND SHORE UP –

As plants begin to fade out of bloom, deadhead them by pinching or cutting off the flower stem below the spent flower and just above the first set of full, healthy leaves. Repeat with all the dead flowers on the plant. Sometimes it may be easier to deadhead plants by shearing them back entirely. Also, check structures in your garden and see if they are stable, if not mend them now before high winds and snow do more serious damage.

DIGGING –

Digging now allows the frost to break up the soil over the winter, improving the structure. If you have clay soil now is the time to dig the beds but wait until the ground has thawed out if it is soddened or after a frost. If you have sandy soil, it’s best to wait until spring to dig as your beds will be more prone to moisture loss.

REMEMBER TO KEEP OFF THE GRASS –

During the winter the grass in your garden will become dormant and in turn become very vulnerable and easily damaged. If possible, avoid walking on the grass at all during the cold months but if that isn’t an option, use a plank to get around the garden as it spreads out your weight on the grass.

PROTECT YOUR PLANTS –

If possible, bring tender plants indoors or if you have one available, place them in a greenhouse. If neither of those options is viable, use cloches to cover them and keep them safe during the harsh conditions.

COVER THE GROUND –

If you have an allotment cover your empty veg beds with landscaping fabric or cardboard and weigh it down with planks and bricks. This will keep the weeds down over winter, and the soil will warm up quicker in spring. Covering beds also prevents loss of nutrients from the soil due to rain and wind.

ADD NUTRIENTS –

Add compost or manure to your beds now for healthier plants next year. Either fork it in or spread it on top. It’s also a good time to make leaf mould. Make a wire cage for the leaves so they don’t blow away or keep in black plastic bags with a little soil added to help them break down, and a few punctures in the bag.

PLANT BULBS –

There’s still time to get bulbs in the ground in November to guarantee colour from January onwards. Choose a mixture of varieties and plant in clumps, so that you get a good effect. You can lift and divide them every few years too.

TIDY YOUR TOOLS –

If you have a greenhouse now’s the time to give it a good clear out. Also, sharpen all tools and replace any beyond repair.

Today we know Black & Decker as a powerhouse in the production of power tools, accessories, hardware and home improvement products. Their wide range of reliable products is very common in the average household, however, as the majority of companies we still see today, their path to success has a huge story behind it.

Their story began in the city of Baltimore, Maryland in 1910, two young entrepreneurs S. Duncan Black and Alonzo G. Decker, decided to combine their savings, which amounted to just $1,200, and opened up a machine shop. Their early products included machines for making milk bottle caps and candy dipping. 1916 saw Black & Decker launch their first patent application for a ½-inch portable electric drill, it was made using the grip and trigger switch off a pistol. The company then opened its first large-scale manufacturing plant, in Towson, a suburb north of Baltimore.

In just 9 years, Black & Decker’s annual sales reached $1 million. In 1919 the company completes a new 20,000-square-foot factory in Towson. As part of a publicity stunt for expansion across the US, the company sent out two buses across the country with the comapanies logo on it and offered out product demonstrations, including using mobile classrooms to educate salesman and plant operators about their products.

Another 20 years of success passed, the company continued to reach huge annual sales and their customers were spread all over the US, a sign of the expansion they had tried to get hold off. The business saw a huge wave of investment in 1936 amidst Black & Decker entering the New York Stock Exchange.

1946 saw Black & Decker start the “DIY Revolution” across the US, with the launch of Home Utility line of drills and accessories, including the world’s first portable electric drill for consumers. Following the death of co-founder Alonzo G. Decker Sr, Robert D. Black, brother of S. Duncan Black was named the president of B+D in 1956. It was success after success for the business, as once again, in 1957, they had managed to revolutionise the US market, this time the market for consumer lawn and garden equipment, with the release of the first electric outdoor tools designed for everyday life.

The 60’s and 70’s was a pivotal time for B+D as they began to become recognised throughout the world due to their products such as the world’s first cordless electric drill, cordless hedge trimmer, workmate portable workbench (which was a huge success in the UK, receiving an award of excellence from England’s Design council) and the Dustbuster, a hand-held cordless vacuum, all which were groundbreaking concepts at the time.

Black + Decker played a huge part in the famous “Space Race”, aiding NASA with equipment such as a cordless, minimum-torque space tool which was for astronauts to use under weightless conditions. NASA also used B+D parts to craft an Apollo Lunar Surface Drill which successfully removed core samples from the moon during NASA’s Apollo 15 mission.

Today, Black + Decker has a reported annual income of just over $605 million.

With the majority of today’s chainsaw owners being ‘occasional lumberjacks’ – using their machines for cutting and bucking logs or trimming their shrubbery and trees, they tend to forget how important it is to constantly care for your cutting equipment. Although with today’s modern saw being increasingly efficient, you can’t blame anyone for believing nothing needs to be done when their chainsaw cuts through raw timber as well as it did on the first day they used it.

However, constant neglect to their machine could prove to be a costly error in the future as the saw withstands a lot of punishment that, when untreated, could need a lot of repairs or replacement parts leading you to a hefty bill. So to save you from spending and stressing over you saw, and extending its life, here are some tips for caring and maintaining your chainsaw –

Bar maintenance – One of the most common problems with chainsaws is the wear of the underside of the bar, where most of your chopping and cutting occurs.

• Before each use, turn the guide bar so that the wear is distributed evenly
• Constantly clean the groove of the guide bar and oil inlet
• Remove the bar and file away burrs from its bar rails
• Replace your bar if either the bar groove is not deep enough to hold the drive link (this is found at the most worn part on the rail) or the chain is not kept straight up in the groove

Keep your chain sharp –  Cutting with a dull or blunt chain leads to a more time consuming and costlier experience with your tools, it leads to higher fuel consumption and excessive wear. This can be avoided by filing your chains regularly in the correct way. These are the tools you need to keep your chain sharp:

• Round file
• Flat file
• File gauge
• Stump vice

How to sharpen the chain?

• Place the filing gauge on the chain. The arrows on the filing gauge should point in the chain’s direction of rotation. Make sure the gauge has contact with the chain.
• Use the round file. Place the file at a 90° angle to the rollers on the filing gauge. File with both hands resting the file on both rollers. File the cutting tooth away from you with smooth strokes.
• Now proceed to file every other tooth. Each cutting tooth should be filed so that it is sharp. It is important that all the cutting teeth are of equal length.
• Once you have finished filing all the cutting teeth on one side, loosen the vice and then attach the guide bar from the other direction. Sharpen the cutting teeth in the same way from the opposite direction.

When to replace the chain –

• We advise replacing your chain if you find cracks or if the longest portion of the cutting tooth is less than 4 millimetres

Keep the chain lubricated – Another common cause of premature wear is poor lubrication of the chain, it is recommended that you check the oil each time you refuel. An easy way of checking is to start the chainsaw, hold it over a stump and rev the engine, if there is a line of oil on the stump then your chain lubrication is working.

Cleaning your chainsaw – Another important part of chainsaw maintenance, a few tips on how to clean it are:

• Locate the clutch cover and remove it.
• Clean the chain brake band.
• Clean the chainsaw bar occasionally by scooping out any debris from inside the track.
• Locate the cylinder cover and remove it.
• Wash the air filter.
• Clear out the cooling fins and air intake if there is debris stuck between the slots.
• Check the flywheel fins periodically to make sure nothing is blocking the air from cooling the engine.

John Deere was founded in 1837 after John Deere a blacksmith for Illinois manufactured a highly polished blade to cut through the thick soil of the eastern USA. The company rapidly expanded and by 1842 they were producing 100 blades per year. John Deere moved to a new factory in Moline in 1848, where they still have their headquarters today. In 1873 John Deere was elected mayor of Moline and served for 2 years and is credited with grand infrastructure projects that included street lighting and sewers.

The Famous leaping deer trademark was registered in 1876 and has been trusted by farmers worldwide ever since. John Deere has been built on quality and innovation throughout the years. The company introduced the Gilpin Sulky Plow in 1875 which trounced the competition in trials held in Paris and is today considered “The King of the Riding Plows”. John Deere entered the tractor market in 1918 with their Water Boy Tractor, which went on to sell 5,634 units in the first year.

During the great depression in the 1930’s the company extended credit for struggling farmers which resulted in stronger brand loyalty amongst the farming community, even with the onset of the great depression John Deere continued to innovate, with the introduction of 2 new tractors the Model A and the Model B which were still produced until 1952. 1937 was a momentous year for the company, not only was it the 100^th anniversary but they also achieved over $100 million in sales for the first time in their history.

During the second world war, John Deere contributed greatly to the war effort producing aircraft parts and ammunition. The company also deployed men in the form of the John Deere Battalion which serviced and repaired tanks during the war in Europe.

The company next big leap forward was in the with the introduction of its new 4 and 6 stroke engines which superseded it 2 stroke engine which had been used for over 40 years. The’60s also saw John Deere enter the domestic market with its range of ride on mowers.

Today John Deere is a multinational company which operations in 35 countries around the world with a diverse portfolio of both commercial farming machinery and domestic ride on mowers. The green and yellow John Deere logo are trusted by farmers the world over.

Flymo is a manufacturer of hedge trimmer, leaf blowers, garden vacs, lawn mowers and lawn rakes. Flymo is one of the most recognized names when it comes to gardening tools and mowers and is unrivalled in its innovation and development of its garden machinery and accessories. The distinctive shade of orange can be seen in the summer months keeping the nation’s lawns in peak condition.

Swedish lawnmower manufacturer Karl Dahlman first took to inventing the famous ‘hover mower’ after taking inspiration from the invention of the hovercraft in 1964 by Sir Christopher Cockerell. The first line of hover mowers was produced and went on sale in 1965.

The hover mower’s air cushion is produced by an internal fan which draws air in through ducts at the top of the mower, the air is then pushed down by the fan thus creating high pressure under the mower and producing lift. Ingeniously the blades are attached to the fan which cuts the grass while it rotates. Hover mowers are renowned for their movability and ease of use making them ideal for the older gardener. Hover mowers are also lighter and easier to store than conventional lawnmowers.

Flymo’s hover mowers were an immediate success due to the innovative way the mower cut the lawn, which was revolutionary at the time. The hover mower made grass cutting easier and less time consuming compared with traditional mowers, which made them an instant hit amongst gardeners.

During the 1970s the company continued to grow and eventually started manufacturing in its UK Durham plant, where their headquarters are still currently based. The trademark orange colour only appeared in 1977 before that the products were blue and white.

The 1980s saw Flymo launch a new range of electric wheeled mowers known as the Chevron Range these mowers were aimed at gardeners who wanted the traditional striped lawn look achieved by traditional lawnmowers but also appreciated all the benefits of a modern electric mower.

In The 1990s the company’s focus switched to gardening tools, Flymo’s gardening vac went on sale in 1993. The garden vac is an indispensable part of the modern gardener’s arsenal making the arduous task of clearing autumn leaves less taxing.  Today the top of the range Garden Vac 2700 can even collect wet leaves which are then shredded ready for composting.

Robotic lawn mowers were the introduction in 2013, now you can sit back and soak up the sun while your mower makes its way across your garden. The science behind the robotic lawn mower is always based on keeping the lawn at the optimal length, it does this by cutting the grass regularly. The process produces small clippings are then deposited back on to the lawn where they are quickly absorbed back into the grass. When the robotic mower has finished it returns to its charging station automatically where it charges ready for the next time.

Today Flymo is a leading manufacturer of outdoor power tools and gardening machinery, Flymo is the biggest brand in the Husqvarna group which is based in Sweden and has over 10,000 employees spread over 40 countries.