Garden visit: Winter garden full of light and life at Tanja's
When winter lays a quiet blanket over the garden, it doesn’t mean all life comes to a halt – at least not at Tanja’s. Here, the urban townhouse yard is transformed into a warm, glowing winter garden full of small projects, big dreams, and everyday magic. Step into her cozy world, where fairy lights sparkle, candy jars bloom, birds chirp – and winter takes center stage.
Garden owner: Tanja Reine, @rekkehusbonden on Instagram, her husband Amund, their children Emil, Jenny, and Tim, and their dog Kokos
Garden: Townhouse garden of about 130 sqm in an earthy style where most things are edible, featuring a greenhouse, raised beds, and a covered pergola
Hardiness zone: H3–H4 in Ekeberg, Oslo
Tanja has transformed the garden’s bare winter look into a cozy and atmospheric oasis. This down-to-earth gardener appreciates living in a country with four seasons.
– I really love the different seasons. It’s exciting when the snow comes and it becomes proper winter. There’s hardly anything more beautiful than a snow-covered garden.
Warm atmosphere
Tanja is obsessed with vegetables, and in the urban townhouse garden, almost everything is grown in raised beds so that most of it is harvested before winter arrives. That’s why the garden has a bare look during the darkest time of the year.
When winter lies heavy over the garden, she starts new sprouts – radishes and spinach that are allowed to wake up at their own pace.
– I’m focused on making it cozy and inviting. We hang lots of fairy lights and lamps in different colors. They highlight the shapes of the plant beds and the bare branches of the apple tree. We’ve also planted a Norwegian spruce in the garden, so we have the perfect Christmas tree all year round – which, of course, is also decorated with lights in December.
Look at what Tanja has achieved with her brilliant trick: winter sowing in candy boxes, a method that gives you strong sprouts without the need for hardening!
Sowing in candy boxes
– I try to be as present as possible in the season we’re in. Winter means atmosphere and coziness for me. At first, I focus on decorating for Christmas and Advent, but in January I slowly start sowing a little indoors. Then the window boxes in the kitchen gradually fill with small pots of chili, peppers, and artichokes under grow lights. In February, it’s all about winter sowing.
– I’ve become obsessed with sowing vegetables outdoors in candy boxes. Since we don’t have a dedicated indoor growing space, it’s absolutely perfect. The fact that the plants grow up strong and don’t need hardening saves me a lot of time. And they’re ready to harvest extra early. I highly recommend it!
How to succeed with winter sowing in candy boxes
- Ask for empty candy boxes at grocery stores. They usually give them away for free.
- Make five holes in the lid and bottom using a pen or a drill.
- Fill the bottom of the boxes with a layer of potting soil and add a thin layer of seed soil on top. Fill about half the boxes with soil.
- Sprinkle the seeds on top and cover with a thin layer of seed soil if needed (check the recommended germination method on the seed packet).
- Fill the boxes with a layer of snow. You can also water them lightly if needed.
- Label them with a marker.
- Place them in a shady spot. (Eventually, the snow will melt and water the soil, allowing the seeds to start sprouting.)
- The boxes act as mini-greenhouses, so make sure to ventilate if there’s a lot of condensation inside.
- Move the boxes to a sunnier spot when the forecast shows stable, milder weather leading up to spring. In zone 3, like here in Eastern Norway, this usually works well from the end of March.
- Keep the soil moist while the little plants grow.
- When the plants have grown up to the lid, it’s time to remove it.
- Repot the seedlings into larger pots if the boxes become too crowded, or plant them directly into beds and pots.
Informal style
Tanja is passionate about the simple, natural things. She prefers free forms and a slightly wild look over a neat and tidy style. In the autumn, she lets the garden die back naturally.
– It feels good to be able to offer the insects hiding places during the cold winter.
Who says the greenhouse is just for growing? Tanja shows you that you can create a cozy oasis in the middle of the winter cold. Light a candle, bring a sheepskin, and find your calm. This way, you extend the gardening season and get a sanctuary when the frost bites!
Winter-dressed greenhouse
Even though the garden’s greenhouse is too cold to use in sub-zero temperatures, it’s also decorated for winter with pots by the entrance.
– I don’t want it to be just a storage space. Sheepskins on the furniture, lights, and evergreen plants make it cozy to peek inside. When the winter sun shines, we sometimes enjoy a hot chocolate in there while looking out through the frost-covered windows.
Chirping birdlife
The family enjoys feeding the birds now that there isn’t much else for them to eat. It brings cozy life to the garden. The birds can choose from several feeding stations around the outdoor space.
– It feels nice to have wildlife around us, and it’s especially entertaining for the youngest in the family. He enjoys keeping track of which bird species visit, she says. The birds can choose from many different spots to eat and are served fat balls, sunflower seeds, and peanuts.
– This attracts a variety of species, like sparrows, tits, finches, bullfinches, and woodpeckers – and they argue less over the food.
When winter is at its coldest, you can easily bring life and activity to the garden! What a joy it is to watch the birdlife, especially when a magnificent woodpecker pays a visit. Give the birds a variety of food, and you’ll see the full range of species up close!
Cozy bonfire time
The fire pit is used frequently throughout the winter. Tim, 11, is a scout and loves starting the fire. Here, the family grills everything from sausages and grilled cheese sandwiches to marshmallows. It’s a great gathering spot even on weekdays after school and work.
– We have a ski trail at Ekebergsletta just outside the garden gate, and sometimes we have a family après-ski around the fire pit after a ski trip.
Full of anticipation
When the snow starts to melt, the sun finally warms a little again, and the buds are lurking, Tanja feels the itch in her fingers to get started in the garden.
– Every year, I’m just as excited to see what has survived under the blanket of snow!
Follow the down-to-earth garden through the seasons:
- aka @hagebonanza, garden-crazy writer and content producer who has visited over 100 of Norway's most beautiful outdoor spaces to spread gardening joy and inspiration.
- aka @rekkehusbonden, copywriter, content producer and gardening enthusiast who is passionate about the joy of growing, with a love for everything edible.
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