Autumn action

There is an old saying, you reap what you sow, and it’s relevant to life in general, whereas when it comes to gardening, if you don’t sow, you definitely won’t reap.

Autumn is nature’s natural time to plant; take advantage of the lovely weather we’re having at the moment, the soil is warm after the summer and hasn’t got too wet yet, so it’s perfect for digging.

There’s so much you can do now that you probably won’t get round to it all, but make a list of the most important things, and remember, everyone’s priorities will be slightly different.

I hope the following checklist will help…

• We all love to see the bulbs coming up in spring and now is the time to plant them; Snowdrops, which are the first to flower, followed by crocuses, which are in turn followed by daffodils and tulips.

Use the short stemmed varieties in pots and containers, as they are much more resistant to wind damage.

Avoid planting bulbs in rows, like soldiers – they are best planted in clumps. Remember Tulips like to be planted deep; 5-6inches is best.

• If you are considering planting a new lawn and your soil is prepared, you can still sow lawn seed. It will be a little slow to germinate but will come up in its own time and it’s better to sow now rather than spring.

I notice after the wet summer that moss is back with a vengeance. Now is the best time to scarify your lawn. The process will remove all the moss and all the old, dead grass – called ‘thatch’. It will breathe new life into your lawn.

Scarifying machines can be hired from tool hire companies and using a scarifier is much easier than trying to do the job with a rake.

If the lawn is a little patchy, now it’s time to feed with autumn Osmo for a super green lawn all winter.

• Now is the perfect time to trim evergreen hedges. If you have a box hedge or box topiary plants, trim them now. It is important to collect as much of the trimmings as possible to minimise the possibility of the dreaded box blight disease, which is destroying box all over the country.

I would go so far to recommend a blower. They are brilliant for collecting trimmings and they also make collecting fallen leaves a doddle. (It’s the best piece of equipment I’ve bought myself in years).

• Herbaceous borders can be tidied up from now on; just remove the spent blooms and any weeds that may have grown over the summer. They will be a lot easier to take out now before they root in for the winter.

• If you have any planting to do, now is the best time of year. There’s an old saying – ‘throw them into the ground in autumn, and they’ll grow, whereas in spring you must plant them’.