Other jobs for the Autumn

The variable summer has taken its toll on some plants and many have suffered so its time to tidy!

• Planting – This is the best time of year to plan for shrub and tree planting. We plant hundreds of trees in the Autumn so plan your border early, plant now with the best of the new season’s stock and you’ll have great flowers and healthy plants next year.
• Mulch – Its also a good time to mulch your borders and top dress plants in containers. Get a compost bin and you can make your own mulch next year. All this helps keep in moisture.
• Annuals and perennials – Lift dead annuals and cut back hardy perennials to the base. Begin transplanting established plants. Plant new bare-root and container-grown perennials in prepared ground.
• Roses – Remove plant debris, cut back taller large flowered roses, check stakes and ties of climbers and prune bush, standard and newly planted roses.
• Climbers – Renew ties and supports.
• Tender plants – Protect from early frost damage by either bringing into the greenhouse or conservatory or covering with a fleece. This applies to plants such as tree ferns and Agaves.
• Shrubs – In mid to late autumn you can begin to transplant shrubs. Wait for leaves to drop on deciduous plants first. Prune evergreen hedges and cut out diseased, dead and damaged wood in shrubs.