Like many gardeners around the country,  the Sunday Gardener's greenhouse is unheated and mostly I've managed fine. I am just about to start the new season sowing, starting with Sweet peas and moving on to various veggies and annuals.

I get germination off to a good start by using a heated mat, and then grow on for short while on warm window sill, or in the conservatory, gradually moving out  and hardening off in the unheated greenhouse later in year around March/April.

Until recently I hadn’t seen the need for any heat in a greenhouse, but we have had such bad summers I am now having a re think.

Heat in greenhouse would help to bring on the bedding plants so  bigger plants would be ready for planting out come May/June, and maybe later more flowers, even if the summer is poor. Last year I grew squash, but the crop was very poor even grown in the greenhouse. Obviously much depends whereabouts  in the country you garden, and the aspect of your garden, but heat would prolong the growing season and produce better growing conditions with less temperature variations.

Whilst mulling this over what is the experience of other gardeners?

It is the time to sow sweet peas but it's so so cold out side there's little enthusiasm for even pottering around to sow sweet peas. Somehow reading the gardening catalogues and working out what to grow for veggies this year inside in the warm is more appealing. Still jobs to be done so here's the link to growing sweet peas

and a reminder how lovely they are.

Traditionally winter is the time to plan next year's garden, to study the seed catalogues, review gardening web sites to decide what new plants and veg to grow next year.

But, every now and again, like now there is a mild spell, warm enough to walk around in a Tee shirt, honestly. This is a great time to garden as you can really see the bare bones of the garden and what needs doing.

Perennial weeds are there to be seen and more easily dislodged. The shrubs, evergreen or deciduous, their shape is much clearer without all the summer planting and this shows which shrubs need tidying up and pruning.

As shrubs get more mature, they can get too large and a good tip is to prune away the lower branches, to lift the shrub's canopy so that any existing under planting gets enough light and space for growth.

There's plenty to be done at this time of year, clearing up the debris, the weeds and the veg plot definitely needs attention. This is a good time to make sure its weed free. Dig or spread some organic compost into the soil ready for planting. Those beds which need fine soil, such as carrots and salad crops, this area needs a good raking to break down lumps and remove stones.

Once done, the veg plot can be covered with black plastic to warm it up ready for the first planting in early spring.

Tip: in warm mild spells open the green house door and ventilate it as much as possible. It's not just the cold which kills plants, the damp does and that thrives on lack of air circulation. Good air circulation will help.

This time of year the garden looks so dead. Heaps of old leaves and brown plants may suggest there's nothing going on in the garden.

But there is, down at the roots life is starting to shoot on some of the hardiest perennials. Look closely at the photo below which is of a Nepeta, Cat Mint, and you will see at the very base of the plant the new growth for next year.

It maybe very cold but the mild spells are a good time for gardening. This time of year the weeds come away more easily from the earth and are much easier to spot. In spring, sometimes its hard to tell weeds from new shoots, and in summer there so much growth the weeds get hidden. This time of year there's no hiding place for them so it's a good time to deal with perennial weeds, at least some of them are out of the way for the spring.