Ideas For Autumn

IN THE GREENHOUSE

Time for a thorough clean with Jeyes Fluid to kill overwintering pests and diseases.

Remove shading materials and insulate with bubble polythene.

Use a paraffin or electric heater to keep frost-free.

IN THE GARDEN

Plant Spring bulbs for colour next year.

Plant trees, shrubs, conifers, heathers, roses and perennials while the soil is moist and warm.

Check trees are properly staked and ed before they are rocked by Winter winds.

Add interest to your garden with easy-to-install low voltage or solar lighting.

Clear away spent annual flowers and vegetable waste and add to the compost heap. You can add a compost activator to speed up decay. Clear away diseased material too, but put it in the bin or on the bonfire, not in the compost heap.

Replace Summer bedding with Winter pansies, wallflowers, violas and primroses for colour in the Winter months.

Do the same with your tubs and hanging baskets, adding bulbs, ivy and mini evergreen shrubs to extend the season of interest.

Raise clay pots on pot feet to protect from frost.

Buy horticultural fleece to protect tender plants in frosty weather.

Apply a thick mulch of bark chippings to insulate plant roots and suppress weeds.

Treat slippery paths with a cleaner such as Algon.

Stretch netting over your pond to catch falling leaves.

IN THE KITCHEN GARDEN

Plant over-wintering onions in September, and garlic in October, to harvest next year.

Dig your veg patch over once the crops are removed, exposing pests such as wireworm to the birds.

Prune apples and so fruit as soon as leaves fall.

Apply Winter tree wash and grease bands to fruit trees in Autumn to control over-wintering pests.

Protect winter veg from bird damage using netting and stakes.

THE LAWN

Remove fallen leaves with a leaf rake or besom, collecting them into sacks to rot down into leaf mould.

Control moss with a moss killer. Then rake out the dead moss

Now aim to get to the root of the problem by reducing shade if possible, and/or improving drainage by spiking the lawn with a garden fork or aerator.

Follow aeration by top dressing the lawn with a generous application of a sandy top-dressing mix.

Feed with autumn lawn food to develop strong roots.

Early Autumn is a good me to sow grass seed.

WILDLIFE

Make new plantings with wildlife in mind – shrubs like holly and cotoneaster for berries to feed the birds, and nectar-rich flowers like hypericum, buddleja or achillea (yarrow) for the bees and butterflies.

Fill your bird tables and feeders regularly with a selection of different nuts, seeds etc.

Install nest boxes for birds, insect refuges and hedgehog houses before the weather becomes too cold. IN THE HOUSE

Grow prepared hyacinths or Paperwhite narcissi in bowls for Christmas.

Treat yourself or your friends to planted arrangements, azaleas, cyclamen or other houseplants – the perfect gift

Brighten up your life (or someone else’s!) with a beautiful fresh floral bouquet.