Your October Garden this Autumn
Although we had some amazingly warm days this September, autumn is now definitely here, and the
days are decidedly shorter. This is the time of change, from summer pinks and blues to the autumn
oranges and reds. As the leaves fall, raking them will provide lots of lovely leaf mould for use next
year.
Jobs For Your Garden this October
- Clear up fallen autumn leaves regularly, bag up or add to compost bins for beautiful leaf mould
- next year
- Keep dead- heading and cut back perennials that have died down but leave the more tender
- ones such as Penstemon and Salvia until spring.
- Plant all spring bulbs except tulips which need to wait until next month
- For those of us with clay soil, now is the perfect time to improve it with composts and mulch
- before it becomes too wet or frozen
- Harvest orchard fruit – store only those in perfect condition. Pick and ripen squash and
- pumpkin: stand them outdoors on a slatted surface and bring under cover if frosty.
- Lift remaining maincrop potatoes
- Prune climbing roses
- Renovate old lawns or create new grass areas by laying turf but make sure the soil is well
- prepared first.
Topical Tips – Protecting your plants
Now is the time to start thinking about which plants need protection from frost and other winter weather conditions.
Mulch borders to keep in warmth, suppress weeds and improve the soil. Lay a layer of 6 to 8 inches of wood chips or straw over perennial and flower beds. Protect outdoor plants with screens or
frames and make sure to water before a freeze. Moist soil holds more heat than dry soil but frozen soil can kill so protect it first.
Move tender plants, including aquatic ones, into the greenhouse. Fuchsias and dahlias can be left until their top growth is touched by frost, but bananas, lantanas and pelargoniums will do better without frosting.
With plants that spend winter outside, once frost has touched plants such as Agapanthus, cut off frosted leaves and cover crowns with a protective mulch such as fleece or netting pegged down. Avoid plastic, as this prevents air reaching the crowns and may cause rotting.
Move plants in pots, such as Agave and Cordyline to a wall for protection. This also applies to
otherwise hardy plants, such as Camellia, because when the soil in the open garden becomes frozen
it can kill plants which we want for a fantastic display next year.
More gardening tips and ideas
You can find our latest gardening tips and ideas in the latest edition of Bee Local Magazine. It also includes gardening services from local tried and trusted businesses.
