Old hair combs should not be thrown away as they can serve a vital purpose in the garden during November, according to a gardening expert.
Comb helps separate grass blades
Gardening with Ish, whose real name is Ish Kamran, shared the advice with his 196,200 TikTok followers. He revealed: "One of the weirdest things I have in my garden is a comb, but this helps my plants more than you'd expect."
Using his Stipa ornamental grass as a demonstration, he illustrated how a comb can efficiently separate individual grass blades, enabling them to move considerably more naturally.
He continued: "By simply running a comb through it a few times, what you're doing is separating all of those blades of grass. And you should see in no time at all. Look at that, it looks a lot better. Now that's one benefit."
Natural matting protects from frost
"The second benefit is all that spent grass is now here, it's collected in that comb, I like to collect quite a bit of it and I just start rubbing it together. See it makes a nice natural matting."
"Now cool thing about this is you've got these grasses, what you do is pop this right in the bottom and this will help protect it from any damage from frost."
He recommended it can act as a highly effective insulating layer during winter, stopping excessive moisture from seeping through during wet weather or even freezing conditions.
Other November gardening tasks
November focuses on tidying the garden, safeguarding plants from harsh weather and preparing for next spring's growth.
Plant tulips in borders or containers at approximately three times their depth with the pointed end facing upwards. Cut back withered, dead perennial stems, although seedheads such as coneflowers or sedum can be retained to offer winter interest and sustenance for garden birds.
Garlic, onions and shallots can thrive over winter. Dormant apple and pear trees, along with autumn-fruiting raspberries, can also be pruned. If the grass continues to grow, give it one last gentle cut using a high mower setting, and regularly clear fallen leaves from both the lawn and pathways to prevent the grass from being smothered or developing fungal disease.
