Gardening tips & advice for October

[Gardeners world]

It's that man or hippy as one of my customers described me back again to nag you into looking after your garden, so you get the benefits of your care come next spring & the enjoyment of the autumn colours. So here goes:

1. It's that time to start clearing those leaves again, although they're a little late this year thanks to such a wet spring. Trees are very clever things, & they collect all the toxins & pollutants in the air, exchange it for oxygen & deposit their leaves full of these toxins to prevent anything growing & competing with them for nutrients & water. This means your lawn & shrubs are badly affected & you will be asking me or someone else to replace them next year. It's just one of those jobs I'm afraid, but just think of the exercise you're getting & saving all that money!! Mind you, you could get a leaf blower. Drives my dog Barney raving mad!!

2. Talking of lawns, it's a really good time to renovate or replace lawns, as they won't be disturbed too much during winter. If renovating, apply an autumn weed & feed, wait for the moss & weeds to die back, then give the area a thorough raking & forking every 6 inches, it will look terrible, but don't worry, it will grow back. Apply a good quality seed that matches your lawn, usually a rye mix along with some topsoil & dry sand mix. Rake again, then tamp down with your feet. Then keep off for around 6/8 weeks. If re-turfing, try getting one of us ( forum gardeners) to help you. Mow your lawns for the last time, trim the edges & apply an autumn lawn feed. Do not walk on the lawn when the frost & snow arrive, it will kill it!

3. Divide your herbaceous perennial plants into two or more clumps & replant, ( free plants!!) your herbaceous plants always look better planted in odd numbers of 3s 5s 7s & so on, just balances them out. Still time to buy spring & summer bulbs & shrubs to plant up while there is still heat in the soil. Plant with a good compost & heel in really well covering the crown of the roots well.

4. Buy plant fleeces for your tender plants & cover them when the weather forecast says frost is imminent. Take in very tender plants like Bougainvillia or keep close to the house walls & cover in thick fleece.

5. Most fruits, apples, grapes plums should have been picked by now, but again with a late start to the season some will still be hanging around. A deft twist of the fruit in your hand will reveal its readiness. Still not received any pies yet!!!

6. I know I go on a bit, but nearly finished!

Prune climbing roses & cut back perennials that have died back. Cut back as hard as you wish Jasmine that is climbing the house or taking over the fence. Same with Passion flower & the thicker growing clematises such as Armandii. Feed them early spring. They will grow back!

7. If you want a bit of colour around the garden or visible through your windows to cheer you up, then plant up some Skimmias, lovely plant, evergreen leaves, nice white flowers at Christmas followed by red berries, lovely. My favourite around this time of year are Hellebores or Christmas roses as they are known, lovely subtle colours & a nice flower on the dining table. If you like a bit of colour & security, then Pyracantha is what you are looking for, very long thorns, but bright red or orange berries. Not a favourite with burglars unless they have masochistic tendencies!!

Lastly, Cyclamen provide either bright border colour in clumps or moveable colour if in pots. Buy from a reputable source as they can be temperamental if in the wrong compost, keep deadheading them & feeding them for prolonged flowering.

8. Lastly ( honest) If you don't want foxes in your garden & don't want them culled either, put chilli, preferably a strong sauce around the borders, they really don't like it, it doesn't harm the wild life, local cats or dogs & is much preferable to other extreme remedies, like renting Barney my huge Jack Russell, ( very expensive!)Stock up with fat balls & seeds for our feathered friends as we might just be in for another of those climate change winters. Come to think of it, stock up on soups & chocolates, ( something stronger always welcome!!)to keep your friendly gardeners warm too!

As always, if these tasks are beyond you, please make use of the well recommended gardeners on the forum who know what they are doing. ( Important!)

I currently have some space for projects, advice ( free ) & garden designs.

Happy gardening.

Nigel

07961888253

[Gardeners world]

A further note: Once you have mown your lawn for the last time, you may need to put your mower in for a service. Good idea to get in early as mower engineers are few & far between. The only one I know & use is on Beckenham rd at Clockhouse. If anyone knows of one in East Dulwich please let me know

[Gardeners world]

Nearly forgot!! This is the time of year to power wash your decks or patios & apply appropriate treatment or sealant. This will protect them from the rigours of the winter to come. Beware you don't wash out the pointing on patios. This will not only protect your deck/patio but make it far easier to clean come spring & also prolong its life.