Mzzz B's Autumn Garden Blog

Touch of Red Marigold

Cosmos

Hardy Geranium

Salvia

Japanese Cherry

Marigold and Tagetes

The summer has ended and we are really into autumn with colder nights and wetter, windier,weather, The hot summer seems to have done the garden good, and here in Tattenhall we were lucky as we didn't have such a prolonged drought as other parts of the country.
The garden still has colour in it, a lot from late flowering annuals grown from seed and planted out into early gaps after some spring flowers have finished. They will go on flowering hopefully until the first frosts. Then we have the autumn colour from the trees, like this little cherry. It's a lovely time of the year, but there is still work to do, especially as I have just returned from a 2 week holiday.

Jobs to do in the garden this month:

• If you have bought daffodil bulbs now is the time to plant them. Wait until November for the tulips.
• Time to start putting tender perennials into a sheltered place or greenhouse, as the overnight temperatures are dropping and our weather is not so predictable as it has always been.
• Continue cutting back perennials that have flopped over, they may be covering a favoured plant.
• But don't be too tidy – attractive seed heads are great for insects, look wonderful covered in autumn dew, and provide great winter silhouettes.
• Once your borders are clean and tidy, spread a thick layer of compost, bark chips or well-rotted manure. Don't worry about digging it in – let the worms do the hard work for you
• Leaf mould adds structure and organic matter to your soil and is a great way to recycle fallen leaves. Choose a sheltered spot that won't spoil the view of your garden and using wire mesh and wooden stakes, make a large bin. Fill with leaves, sprinkle with water and leave. Once the leaves reach a crumbly texture, spread as a mulch throughout your borders.
• Keep deadheading throughout October, particularly the equatorial plants like dahlias. This will extend their flowering season and squeeze the last bloom from them. They can be left in the garden until after the first frosts then dif up the tubers and store in a cool dry place in trays of sand and dry compost
• Save seed from your perennial plants, put them in labelled paper bags to keep them dry until you sow them. Store in a cool dry place.
• It is not too late to take cuttings- choose healthy non flowering growth and remove the bottom leaves. Put into a pot with a free draining peat free compost mixed with sand or perlite- 50:50. Keep humid and leave in the pot overwinter in a greenhouse or your window sill.
• Perennial plants can be moved or planted any time between October and the middle of March.
• Plant or move biennials such as forget-me-nots, wallflowers, foxgloves.
• Prune climbing roses. Climbing roses flower on shoots grown the same spring so they can be pruned hard now. (Rambling roses on the other hand produce their flowers on shoots grown the previous summer so should only be pruned immediately after flowering.)

The Tattenhall Gardening Society begins its new season in October, with a talk from local flower grower Carol Siddorn talking about Foliage and cut flowers for autumn, Wednesday October 12th Barbour Institute, 7.30pm. This is where you can always get advice and encouragement! There will also be plants for sale.

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