Getting ready for winter - advice needed please

It's good to plan.

If you have nettles bear in mind the first frost will kill off their leaves and all that will be left are their roots over winter.

You don't necessarily need to turn over the soil before winter. If you are on a heavy/clay soil it might be a good idea to do so. Digging before the winter is a good method of controlling weeds. Also digging over and leaving big clods exposes a bigger area of soil for the frosts to break down and will eventually lead to a better soil structure - but that doesn't work for all soil types.

Don't apply comfrey/nettle tea over winter to vacant ground, the nitrogen in the tea will just get washed away. It's best to apply to crops as they are growing in the spring.

It would be better to get garlic into the soil before winter, although it depends what type you intend to grow. Some can be sown in the spring. The majority of types need to be in the ground October/November time.

Green manures are a good way of covering vacant ground over winter, improving soil structure and preventing nutrients being washed away. Leguminous green manure add a lot of goodness back into the soil. They also have the benefit of smothering out weeds.

Lemon balm and mint will just need tidying up - give them a trim to stop them getting scraggly. They will lose their leaves over winter, but they will quickly grow back again in the spring. If you have a polytunnel then you could pot some up and bring them inside to prolong their harvest period.

I would say keep the plastic spirals on the hedge, they are for rabbit protection and will be needed for the first few years unless you are very very sure you don't have any of the little pests.