Gardeners Calendar - Autumn
1. Planting 2. Hedging 3. Seed 4. Bulbs 5. Trees 6.Instant colour 7. Soft fruit 8. Autumn lawn care 9. Pruning/Tidy up
Planting
This autumn provides the very best conditions for planting new trees and shrubs in your garden. The wet and warm summer has created the perfect growing conditions for all types of plants, leaving the soil in just the right condition for adding new plants.
As your plants start to die back for winter it creates new spaces for new plants. Use this as the perfect opportunity to tidy up the garden and to add new plants to the gaps that have formed.
Spaces in the flower border can be filled with new perennials or planted with spring flowering bulbs. Check out the huge range of flowering bulbs available in store at Woodcote Green.
Woodcote Green recommends:
Tulip ‘Angelique’. Plant from August onwards, approximately 10cm deep, and 10cm apart. Very fragrant, ideal for beds and borders so plant them in the sun, preferably with optional partial shade nearby. These are great for under planting roses.
Narcissus tete-a-tete. Plant from August onwards, approximately 10cm deep, and 10cm apart. Bulb size is about 10–11cm. Multi-stemmed with an average height of approximately 15-16cm, you will be looking for these to flower in and around March/ April.
Hyacinth pre-packs. These bulbs need to be planted September - December for flowering in April. Plant them approximately 20cm deep, and 15cm apart. Very fragrant with an average height of approximately 15-16cm, these are suitable for indoors as well as outdoors. Need to be watered regularly.
Hedging
If you are thinking about a new garden boundary then consider planting a hedge. It’s a wonderful, natural screen in the garden and if you choose the right plants it will provide shelter and nesting sites for a whole range of wild birds. You can choose from a wide range of container grown hedging plants in the plant sales area, or wait until late October when the bare root hedging plants will be in stock and plant these instead. Impatient gardeners can choose mature/established plants to plant now for an instant hedge effect in their garden.
Woodcote Green recommends:
Beech. This comes bare root in either green or purple. The leaves will turn a light brown throughout the winter, and will begin to thrive again in spring. Very good value for money.
Yew. This is evergreen and makes for a really good backdrop for other plants. Is dark green in colour and can be pruned easily. Size ranges from about 60 – 90cm.
Box hedging. This is evergreen and can be clipped into shape very easily. Being approximately 20-30cm in height, this is ideal for low growing hedges. Very robust and pollution proof.
Seed
Autumn is also a good time to sow some plants from seed. By sowing and growing sweet peas and some broad beans and peas in October and November the plants have a good head start next spring, but there are also some other hardy annuals and biennials that can be autumn sown, these include larkspur, some poppies, cornflowers and love-in-a-mist. You’ll find a massive range of fresh new seed from several suppliers in store at Woodcote Green now.
Woodcote Green recommends:
Broad Bean ‘Aquadulce Claudia’. A quick growing seed which is less susceptible to blackfly than other varieties. These are ideal for freezing, and should be sown October - January in a fertile, well drained soil. Can be harvested June-July.
Sweet Pea ‘Astronaut mixed’. The ultimate sweet pea. Outstanding cut flower, it has a glorious colour range with a light fragrance. Superb for arches, obelisks and trellis, this climber should be sown October-January for summer flowering.
Nigella Persian ‘Jewels Mixed’ (Love-in-a-mist). One of the easiest and most beautiful garden plants. It blooms in a unique mixture of mauve, lavender, purple, rose, and blue making it an ideal border filler. Great cut and dried flower, it should be sown August-September.
Bulbs
Pay a visit to Woodcote Green this autumn and you’ll find the sales area stacked out with thousands of spring flowering bulbs. Each one contains the promise of spring and will create a splash of welcome colour in the early months of the year. Choose carefully and you can have bulbs in flower from January right through to June. Most of these can be planted during the autumn to flower next spring.
Woodcote Green recommends:
Tulip ‘Double Red Riding Hood’. Plant August onwards, approximately 10cm deep, and 10cm apart. Like to be in sunshine and partial shade with well drained soil. Try multi level planting in pots with other bulbs like Daffodils and Crocus for a truly spectacular effect.
Crocus. Ideal for naturalizing, this needs to be planted approximately 5cm down, 10cm apart in well drained soil. Suitable for containers, rockeries and in between shrubs. When planting, place netting or wire mesh beneath the surface to prevent mice or squirrels eating the corms.
Single Snowdrops ‘Woodland’. Also known as bulb of the year 2008. Flowers February-March, these should be planted about 5cm down, and 5cm apart. These perennials are particularly hardy, and are ideal for lawns, rockeries, borders and containers with moisture retentive soil.
Trees
Trees create height, structure and interest within the garden and in the autumn many take on a whole new appearance. Fruiting trees such as apples, pears, plums and cherries are laden with juicy fruit, ready to pick, eat, freeze, jam or bottle. Deciduous trees too are starting to change. Their foliage colours begin to take on autumnal hues as early as September as the trees prepare to drop their leaves in readiness for winter.
Gardens and wildlife need trees and autumn is the very best time to plant them while the soil is still warm from summer and early autumn rain will help them establish very quickly.
• Autumn is an excellent time to plant containerised trees. Submerge the container and the root ball in a bucket of slightly tepid water. It is important to ensure that the root ball and surrounding compost is thoroughly wet before planting. If you are investing in a valuable specimen tree or simply need assistance with planting, consider the new Premium Planting Service, available at Woodcote Green. Enquire at customer services for details.
• Check on newly planted trees. You may find that the compost/soil mixture has settled and sunk a little around the base of the tree. If so, fill in the sunken area with a dedicated planting compost and firm gently.
Woodcote Green recommends:
‘Conference’ Pear Tree. The no. 1 choice because of its reliability under less than perfect conditions. The fruits are very narrow, but are juicy with firm flesh. These flower mid season and are slightly susceptible to wind damage.
Crab Apple Tree ‘Malus Red Sentinel’. A classic crab apple tree with decorative fruit persisting well into January. Ideal for Autumn/ Winter time; these are a natural food source for birds and fruit laden shoots can be used for Christmas decorations. This is an ornamental patio tree and disease resistant, with scented flowers.
‘Viburnum Tinus’. A compact shrub with dark green leaves. This will flower winter-spring time, with the fruits appearing in June. Evergreen foliage, it’s about 3m in height.
Mulch around your tree with an appropriate mulch. Woodcote Green recommends:
J. Arthur Bowers Composted Bark. Suppresses weeds, is long lasting and holds water well. This is a top soil conditioner, for ideal coverage, apply 4cm deep. For ericaceous plants, use Bowers mini bark chips. Click to buy online
Peat free composted stable manure. Helps with water retention, can be used all year round, it is the more organic option and should be applied 3.5-5cm deep on damp, weed free soil. Click to buy online.
• Water newly planted trees when the weather is dry. It is much better to water them thoroughly twice a week, than superficially, daily. If in doubt scrape away the top surface of the soil to see how far down the water has soaked after watering. It needs to reach right down to the roots, approximately 12-15cm deep, to ensure that the tree can absorb the water. If you continually just wet the soil surface you will encourage roots to form higher up where they are much more susceptible to damage from extremes of temperature.
• After heavy rainfall apply a mulch around the base of your trees. This will improve the overall appearance of the garden and also reduces moisture loss through evaporation at the soil surface. It will also insulate the tree roots from extreme heat or cold. For newly planted trees this is particularly important. Top up existing mulches around trees that have been mulched previously.
• Weed around young trees by hand removing any weeds that are within 60cm of the main trunk. Weeds will compete with your trees for precious water and nutrients and can also harbour a variety of garden pests and diseases that will over winter nearby to affect your garden plants next season.
Instant colour
Plant autumn and winter bedding now for instant colour in the garden. Choose from a variety of colourful and interesting plants in the bedding plant area at Woodcote Green now.
Woodcote Green recommends:
Wallflowers. These flower in spring and summer, producing brightly coloured, fragrant blooms. Plant in full sun in rockeries, borders and groups for displays. Available in 3litre potted or bare root ‘pick your own’, available beginning of October. Plant them now in their flowering positions for a fabulous, colourful display next spring.
Soft fruit
If you’ve started to grow your own fruit and vegetables, autumn is the perfect time to plant soft fruit and tree fruit. Woodcote Green has a wide variety of fruit canes, fruit bushes and fruit trees to suit every situation and need. You can’t go wrong with raspberries, each cane will produce a small crop of succulent, fragrant fruit next summer and then masses more for every year after. Don’t dismiss gooseberries, currants and cultivated blackberries; even in a small garden these plants can produce a respectable crop of fresh and very tasty home-grown fruit.
If you are new to growing fruit ask for advice from one of the Woodcote Green plant team. Woodcote Green recommends:
Grape vines ‘Pinot Noir’. Dessert and wine making grapes suitable for the British climate. These deciduous vines, sit best in an alkaline soil and in full sun. Top dress using a high potash feed, for example Sulphate of Potash or growmores.
Blueberry ‘Vaccinium Corymbosum’. Best off in a sunny location and should remain well watered, allowing edible fruits to appear August-September, following on from the flowers which should bud in May.
Autumn lawn care
After a summer of wet weather, a little extreme heat and intermittent heavy showers, the lawn has had to endure a wide variety of growing conditions. The grass plants have been stressed by extreme conditions that will impact on its health, so autumn is a good time to make amends.
• Mow the lawn on a higher blade setting to simply remove the top layer of growth. Don’t cut it short or this will stress the grass plants and weaken the roots. Apply an autumn lawn tonic that will support good root growth over the next few weeks. Never use a summer lawn feed late in the season.
• Recut the lawn edges to create a neat finish to the garden. When the lawn looks tidy it reflects on the rest of the garden.
• Give the lawn a boost with an autumn lawn feed.
Woodcote Green recommends:
Wilkinson Sword Edging Iron. Ideal for turfing and creating a neat lawn edge. This ergonomic tool has a stainless steel head, allowing it to enter the soil more easily and prevents rust. It comes with 15 year manufacturer’s guarantee.
Scott’s Lawn Builder Lawn Food. Helps build a thicker and greener lawn for a strong, healthy root growth. Apply as a last feed after summer. Prepares the lawn for the rigours of winter and provides a better green up in spring. A greener lawn will appear after 1 week, and stays healthy all autumn/winter time. Apply September-February.
• Aerate compacted areas and brush lawn sand into the holes, cracks and hollows.
• If the lawn is very mossy then either treat with an Autumn Lawn Feed & Moss Killing product or use Lawn Sand. Wait until the moss has turned black, (about 2 weeks) and remove the dead moss with a spring tine rake.
Woodcote Green recommends:
J. Arthur Bowers Lawn Feed. Weed and Mosskiller. Use September onwards, preferably before the first frost. Ideal application conditions is moist soil but with dry grass. Apply by using a reusable dispenser or a lawn spreader. The moss will blacken 7-10 days after being applied, and should then be raked out.
J. Arthur Bowers Lawn Sand. The traditional moss control treatment. Do not apply on wet or damp grass, or in drought or frost conditions. Ideal application time is spring-autumn, and times when moss is actively growing in your lawns. Contains Pherous Sulphate.
Wilkinson Sword Stainless Steel Spring Tine Rake. The perfect solution for successful removal of grass, moss and cuttings from garden lawns. An extremely light weight tool, this comes with a 15 year guarantee.
• Be sure to sweep up fallen autumn leaves and to keep the lawn free from debris. Keep a watch out for chewed lawn roots and patchy lawns that may indicate a problem with leather jackets and chafer grubs. These are underground larvae that feed on grass roots and can be controlled using naturally occurring nematodes.
• Autumn is a very good time to sow a new lawn from seed or to lay turf. The soil is still warm from the summer and the autumn rain will provide vital moisture as the new lawn develops. It is vital to prepare the soil thoroughly and to keep the developing lawn properly watered. Use the online calculator at (woodcotedirect.com) to work out how much turf you need and then arrange for local delivery from Woodcote Green on the day you want to lay it.
• Repair damaged or worn areas of the lawn. Large areas can be top dressed with a lawn dressing and then over sown with an appropriate lawn seed.
Woodcote Green recommends:
Ryesport Turf. This grade B turf is great value for money with its thick root base, allowing it to be very durable and hard wearing. Ryesport is a medium seeded turf that will grow in most conditions.
Baileys Turf Dressing. A screened, easy to use lawn dressing. It is 100% natural and fertile, allowing you to use as much as necessary without harming anything in your garden. It is sterilised, has a moisture control feature and comes in a 25Kg bag.
Evergreen Lawn Repair Kit. ‘2 in 1’ lawn feed and grass seed product. Its main focus is to treat the bare spots on your lawn, as well as improve thin and patchy areas to. Results should start to show after just 7 days, and a 1.2Kg box will cover an area of 20m2.
• Keep newly sown lawns and freshly turfed areas well watered in dry weather. It is far more effective to water the lawn thoroughly once or twice a week than to wet it superficially on a daily basis. Water at dusk and really soak the area so that the water filters through to the soil around the roots, this encourages deeper roots to develop and reduces the likelihood of surface roots forming that may be susceptible to extremes of temperature.
• Trim the lawn edges every week using lawn-edging shears to give a neat finish. Cut long grass around trees and along the base of fences and walls using a nylon line trimmer. Take care not to damage neighbouring trees, shrubs or wildlife when you are trimming grass.
Pruning/Tidy Up
Don’t assume the garden is finished now autumn has arrived, for some gardeners it is the most magical season of all.
• Cut back any overgrown herbaceous plants removing dead flowers, damaged leaves and stems. Leave any interesting seed heads for the birds or to perpetuate a cottage garden effect if desired.
• Remove any excess growth from trees and shrubs, cutting back long branches by a third to half to prevent wind rock damage over the winter.
• Tie in any climbers that have become wayward over the wet and humid summer, tidy up any straggly growth and make sure supports, trellis and fences are still sturdy and supportive.
• Keep up with fallen leaves, remove any that cover the flower beds, lawns and patio, they can harbour all manner of pests and diseases and are much better mixed into the compost to add rich, organic matter.
• Dig out as many perennial weeds from the borders as possible.
• Some roses will keep on flowering often right through autumn and even into winter, but bear in mind this is sometimes at the expense of their health. Poorly established plants or those that have suffered due to drought and waterlogging would be well served with some TLC now to see them through the winter. Better to remove weak and straggly stems and flowers than to let the plants pour energy into supporting them.
• Prune out and remove the last of the rose flowers as soon as they have withered. Cut just behind the immature rose hip at the base of the flower and remove this and all the dead petals. This will prevent your roses from putting essential energy into making seed and will encourage stronger plants.
• Use good quality, sharp secateurs for the job and try to avoid ripping and tearing plant tissue, as this will allow fungal diseases to creep in. Instead treat yourself to a dedicated pruning saw and some quality secateurs. Woodcote Green only sells quality garden tools so you can be sure that the tools you choose will perform well and last for many seasons of use.
Woodcote Green recommends:
Felco No. 2 ‘The Original’. A handy tool appreciated by professionals for its shear strength. It has a rubber shock absorber on the handle, to cushion and protect the user’s wrist when in use. These Swiss made secateurs are top of the range, and replacement parts are available if required.
Bahco P121-23 bypass Secateurs 230mm. Light, sturdy and practical secateurs suitable for all types of pruning work in the garden. The non stick coated blades are a great feature, allowing the cutting of live wood a whole lot easier.
• Remove any rose leaves showing signs of disease such as black spot, rust and mildew and either burn them or put them in the bin. Don’t add them to the compost or you will help to spread the problem to other roses in the garden. If your roses suffer badly then consider replacing them with varieties that show better disease resistance.
• Prune back and tidy up roses and shrubs that have outgrown their space. Remove any dead, diseased or damaged growth and reduce long stems by about a third to prevent wind rock damage. After pruning, top up the mulch over the roots.
Woodcote Green recommends:
Rose Clear Gun 1 Litre. Providing protection for your treasured roses and ornamental plants, against both pest and disease. This will protect against blackspot, rust and mildew, as well as combat any attacks from the likes of greenfly and blackfly among others. Can also be purchased in a concentrate form for an application on a bigger scale.
‘Alec’s Red’ Rose. Some say this high resistance rose is the best rose you can buy. With its outstanding fragrance, vigorous healthy growth, strong stems, ‘Alec’s Red’ is the jewel in the crown of any rose garden. This best seller maintains a vibrant colour with age and has a good resistance to rain and disease.
• Freshen up pots and containers by removing spent bedding plants and replace with small evergreens, spring bulbs and winter bedding plants.
Woodcote Green recommends:
Japanese Euonymus. This small evergreen is one of the most durable landscape plants around. It is also slow growing, with its size being approximately 3cm high and wide when bought, and a peak size of about 15cm high and wide after 10 years. The small variegated leaves hold close together on the uptight stems, allowing the plant to keep most of the leaf colour in fill sun. Very drought resistant, this grows well in poor soils.
Alium ‘Globemaster’. This unusual shaped plant is ideal for beds and borders as well as tubs and containers, and flowers from bulb June-August time. When grown in full sun, it has a peak height of about 1 metre, with the 15cm flower heads mainly composed of densely packed, star shaped florets. It is long lasting and tidy growing.
Winter Pansies. These make for great winter bedding, with blooms appearing throughout winter before full flowering in spring. Deadheading is essential so the weeping plants don’t seed. When fed once or twice a week with a winter feed, they will really begin to thrive. They are easy to care for, and look great in a container on the patio, or in beds and borders.