The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 letter word HOED
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
H
O
E
D
Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "Did some gardening" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case did some gardening = hoed.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does HOED mean?
HOED verb- To care, be anxious, long.
- To cut, dig, scrape, turn, arrange, or clean, with this tool.
- To clear from weeds, or to loosen or arrange the earth about, with a hoe.