Autumn is officially here – and it’s time for green-fingered enthusiasts to start to prepare their gardens and outdoor spaces ready for the cold winter months ahead
There’s plenty to keep budding gardeners busy over the coming weeks as they prepare for the colder weather.
But if you’re looking for permission to pack your lawn mower away for the winter, you won’t have to wait much longer.
Gardening guru Monty Don has shared his list of to-do jobs for October and it includes some important advice for your grass. According to Monty, we should “keep cutting the grass for as long as it keeps growing” but, he notes, “it is better to have the grass too long than too short over the winter months. Rake out thatch and moss and add to the compost heap”.
Chris McIlroy, in-house lawn seed expert at The Grass People, completely agrees. “Mowing your grass too short can leave it vulnerable to the cold weather,” he previously told Ideal Homes.
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“We advise gardeners to keep their grass around 2.3 to 3 inches tall during the winter months. This length provides enough surface area for photosynthesis while preventing snow mould and root damage from setting in.”
It’s by no means Monty’s only piece of valuable advice for the coming weeks. To save money, he advises on his blog that green-fingered Brits should collect seeds from perennial plants this month. The pro notes that they should be placed in paper (not polythene) bags, and stored in a cool, dry place until ready for sowing.
It’s also the perfect time to bring render plants in under cover before they need protection from the cold, and to plant or move deciduous trees, shrubs and hedges as the soil is still warm so the roots will begin to grow immediately. According to Month, it is essential to give them a really good soak when you do so and to repeat this weekly until the ground is really wet or the leaves have fallen.
He further notes that it is best to start with any evergreens before deciduous plants as they need to maximise root growth before winter kicks in. Deciduous plants, on the other hand, can be moved or planted any time between October and the middle of March.
It’s still fine to continue to plant spring bulbs – although Monty urges to wait another month for tulips – and to sow sweet peas.
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By sowing sweet peas in October you will have bigger plants with a stronger root system that should give flowers next spring earlier and last longer. But the young plants will need storing and some protection over winter if the weather is bad.
Monty advises sowing some now and another batch in February to help spread the risk. He puts three seeds in a three inch pot and uses a good potting rather than seed compost.
They are then put to germinate on a windowsill or greenhouse and once the first leaves have grown, are placed outside in a cold frame or protected spot. They only need protection from hard frosts, mice, and becoming sodden, so do not provide any extra heat, and they will be ready to plant out in April.
