September 2016 Newsletter

It’s hard to believe that we’re moving into autumn again, isn’t it? I hope you’ve had a wonderful summer, and are looking forward to the fanfare of exultant colour that is now just round the corner. We’ve had such a roller-coaster ride this year - weather-wise and politically! - that it makes me wonder if there are any surprises still to come.

Unfortunately, one of the results of the political upheaval we’ve experienced over the summer is the fallout post Brexit in the value of the pound against the euro. We have been informed by many of our suppliers that from this month their prices have to increase, which inevitably means we also have to put some of our prices up. We will, of course, endeavour to maintain the best possible prices we can for you without a decline in the quality you’ve come to expect from us.

Autumn signifies a time of renewal, as well as one of slowing down. It’s one of the busiest times in the gardening calendar, as it’s the ideal time to add new plants to your garden. The reason for this is that the earth is still warm and welcoming, thus allowing roots to establish quickly. However, plants are not in full growth, so can focus on just getting their roots embedded and settled in, before their winter slumbers. It means that they’ll be ready to burst out of the ground as soon as spring kicks in, and you’ll generally find that plants put into the garden in autumn are stronger, bigger and more robust by the following summer than those planted in spring.

So, consider where you noticed gaps during the gardening year and fill them now. Over the past year Sally has mentioned a couple of times that it’s worth taking photos of your garden to remind yourself of how it looks at different times. If you did so, look at the photos now and identify the gaps. Have you got anything that is about to give you glorious autumn colour? Was there a lull in mid-summer with nothing of particular interest to focus on? Was your early spring garden less spectacular than your neighbour’s? If so, now is the perfect time to do something about it.

One of the easiest and cheapest ways to add a blast of colour to any garden is with bulbs. The spring flowering ones are now in stock, and the sooner you get the narcissi and crocus’ in the ground, the better. Tulip planting should be held off until it’s colder (around early November is ideal) but buy the varieties you want now, as we can’t guarantee they’ll still be available later on. Just keep them somewhere cool, dark and dry until you plant them. As always, we’ve got a great range of bulbs in, so there’s bound to be something that’s just right for you.

We are holding Bulb Planting Workshops on Saturday 8 October, with two sessions, lasting approx 30 mins, at 11am and 2pm. Learn how to plant a bulb ‘lasagne’ in a pot. Please let us know if you’re coming.

If you have our typical London clay soil, it’s worth adding some sharp sand or grit to the base of the planting hole, to stop your bulbs rotting, in case we have a wet winter. Alex has sourced some really handy little carry tubs of grit if you only need a little bit, or we have the usual larger bags if you need more.

Many of you have already discovered the wonders of ‘Rootgrow’, so you won’t be surprised to hear that there is a formula especially for getting bulbs off to a good start. Make sure you grab a pack along with your bulbs.

For larger items, we’re well stocked with more coming in all the time. Current heroes looking amazing now are:

Betula (silver birch) - with their ethereal silvery trunks and whispering leaves.
Nandina domestica (heavenly bamboo) - with its lovely fiery autumn foliage
Pyracantha - with gold, orange and red berries
Euonymus elatus – with possibly the most startling autumn leaf colour of all.
Acers - in a range of sizes and colours
Skimmia - evergreen, shade tolerant with glorious berries

Perennials that are fabulous at present include:

Anemone japonica – still going strong
Helenium, Coreopsis and Rudbekia – such a vibrant range of ‘hot’ coloured flowers
Chrysanthamums – love ‘em or hate ‘em, they certainly give you a lot of bang for your buck!
Grasses – at their peak just now

For a short time only, we’ve got winter vegetable strips in stock, including:

Broad beans
Brocolli
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Chard

Within the next few weeks you’ll need to start the ‘Great Autumn Clear Up’. Check now to ensure you have what you need to make this as quick and painless as possible:

A rake – metal or plastic – to gather leaves and other debris
Leaf composting sacks in which to put them to rot down and make gorgeous leaf mould
Sharp, oiled secateurs
Pruning saw, topiary shears, loppers – you know which of these you need
Gloves (including gauntlets if you’re tacking roses or brambles)
A ground sheet on which to throw all the weeds and clippings as you move around your garden … makes life SO much simpler

It’s also a good month to sort your lawn out. We have Lawn Dressing and Lawn Food available, along with a handy information sheet on how to tend your lawn at this time of year.

The other important job this month and next is to mulch your beds and borders. I can’t over-emphasise how much you have to gain from this process, which is simple and easy to do. Wait until after heavy rainfall, or water the beds yourself (to trap moisture), and then just mound a thick layer of mulch around your plants and trees, and let the worms and winter frosts do their job in pulling it down into the soil, helping improve both the structure and nutritional balance therein. Use any of the following:

Well-rotted horse manure, which slowly breaks down into the ground nourishing and improving your garden soil. Particularly useful for improving the structure of clay soil.
Lakeland Gold – this bracken based organic compost is a fantastic ‘clay buster’. Dig it into your beds or use to mulch on top for impressive results.
Wool Compost Double Strength - has a high concentration of naturally derived nutrients for improved plant size and quality, and can be used as a top mulch around established plants. Fabulous value for money – same price as regular wool compost, but double strength.
Decorative bark, which stays on top of the soil for longer, forming a barrier against weeds, and holding moisture in the ground.
‘Strulch’, which is made from mineralised straw, and has won numerous awards. It also acts as a slug and snail deterrent.

Our special offer this month is on well-rotted horse manure …

BUY 3, GET 4^thFREE! (while stocks last)

Sally’s Garden Tasks follows, so you’ll see that, all in all, there’s plenty to keep us all busy outside this month. Let’s hope for some clear bright days in which to get it all done.

Warmest wishes for a glorious September

Karen

Garden jobs

I’ve visited Kew Gardens a couple of times this year and I am very impressed with the new herbaceous borders along the Broad Walk, the largest herbaceous borders in the country. They were planted last October, proving the value of autumn planting. As we head into the autumn season, there are plenty of jobs to get on with.

2 top jobs for September

1. Start choosing and planting spring bulbs, for a colourful display in the garden and containers from January onwards.

2. Start planting new perennials and shrubs into the garden.

General garden maintenance

Keep deadheading Penstemon, Dahlias and other perennials, roses too, to prolong the flowering season.
Start to clear away garden debris from beds and borders and from around containers.
Give evergreen hedges their final trim of the year.
As leaves begin to fall, cover ponds with net to prevent leaves falling in and affecting water quality. Nets also protect fish from herons and other predators.
Rake leaves regularly, especially from lawns where a thick layer of leaves can kill off the grass. Leaves can be used to make leaf mould – store wetted leaves in black plastic sacks for 2 years and you’ll have a fantastic soil conditioner.
Herbaceous perennials which have got too big in their allotted space, or which look tired, can be divided and replanted before they die down. Water them in well.
As Karen has said, it’s worth mounding a good layer of compost or horse manure as a mulch around established trees and shrubs, including fruit trees, roses and wisteria. You want to trap in moisture when you apply a mulch at this time of year, so make sure you have watered dry ground first.
Keep tidying the garden, removing dead and dying leaves from plants, pulling up weeds and generally cleaning to help prevent pests and diseases overwintering.
If you have a compost bin, empty it, ready for the leaves and pruning that you will be collecting over the next couple of months. Vegetable gardens will generate a lot of compostable material too.
A water butt will collect rainfall over the next months, which is particularly good for ericaceous plants like blueberries, Camellia and Rhododendron. Keep these well watered as they are now forming flower buds for their display next spring.
Prepare areas for new planting next year by digging in good quality, well rotted horse manure. If possible, dig down at least one spade depth. The winter frosts will break the soil up even more, making less work for you in the spring.

Container gardening

Summer bedding containers can be prolonged by deadheading and feeding with a high potassium fertiliser such as tomato feed.
Containers can be replanted with a range of interesting leafy plants such as grasses, ferns, Heuchera and small evergreen shrubs, as well as flowering pansies, viola, cyclamen and others.

Pruning

Prune late summer flowering shrubs when the flowers have finished, including climbing and rambling roses.
Once Lavender flowers have faded, cut the plants back with secateurs, within the green growth, not brown wood. Doing this each year will maintain neat, compact plants and encourage more side shoots to grow. For guidance, check our notes Looking after Lavender

Planting

Fill gaps in borders with late flowering perennials such as Sedum,Rudbeckia, Penstemon, Anemone, Salvia, ornamental grasses and many more.
Autumn is an ideal time for planting many trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants. The ground is warm and roots have a chance to get established before the winter cold, and then have a head start on those planted in the spring, putting energy into top growth at the first hint of warmth in the spring.
Look out for bare rooted wallflowers later this month and into October. Get them into the ground as soon as possible, for a stunning display in the spring.
Start planting spring-flowering bulbs now in beds or containers. Small bulbs such as crocus, dwarf iris and small narcissi can be put in window boxes to grow through pansies or violas. Most bulbs can be planted from late summer until late autumn. As Karen has advised, leave planting tulips until later on.
Bulbs should be planted at the right depth - general rule is a depth equivalent to three times their own height, the pack will give planting instructions.

Watering and feeding

Ease up on feeding shrubs and trees with general fertilisers in containers, because soft new growth would be damaged in the winter months.
Keep watering plants in dry spells to reduce stress and the risk of disease such as powdery mildew.

Fruit and Vegetables

Keep picking raspberries, and cut out any canes which fruited earlier this year.
Net fruit trees to protect fruit from the birds.
Remove fallen fruit from around trees and shrubs before it rots.
Fix grease bands round the trunks of apple trees to trap the wingless female winter moths as they try to climb the trunk to lay their eggs, which would turn into bud eating caterpillars.
Root vegetables can be lifted and stored, but leave parsnips and swedes in the ground to be frosted as this improves their flavour.
Plant vegetables such as cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli and more to enjoy through winter and spring.
Pinch out the top of cordon tomatoes to concentrate energy into ripening fruits. Remove any yellowing leaves and leaves which are covering the fruit. This will increase air circulation and help to reduce the risk of grey mould.

Herbs

Pot up herbs such as parsley, mint and basil for the kitchen windowsill to enjoy over the winter.

Lawns

As the weather begins to cool, the lawn will benefit from an autumn work over. It's worth spending some time and elbow grease in the next couple of months:
Remove old “thatch” (dead grass) and moss – use a springy rake to clear the congestion that has built up over the growing season.
Aerate – to improve drainage and help protect against a build up of moss – use an aerator designed specifically for the job, or a fork.
Fertilise – a thin layer of lawn dressing (a combination of top soil, sand and fertilisers) or horticultural sand, should be raked or brushed to fill the holes created by aerating. This will improve drainage and avoid winter waterlogging, especially in heavy clay soils.
September is an excellent time to lay a new lawn with cut turfs, as they will establish their roots quickly, without putting on too much top growth, avoiding the need to mow. Additionally, foot traffic on the lawn is typically less in the autumn than the spring, therefore you are less likely to damage the newly laid turf. You can also revitalise patches in your lawn that are worn out, either with seed or by cutting in new turfs.
Use a lawn weed killer to control perennial weeds before the weather cools.

Pests and disease

Keep a continued vigil against slugs and snails, and make sure you don't leave places where they can settle in for the autumn and winter months.
Check for vine weevil in containers.

Wildlife

Keep feeders topped up for the birds and leave water out for them too. If we look after bird life with food and water, they'll help us in return by eating unwanted insects in the garden.
If thinning out plants in ponds, leave the debris at the side of the pod overnight so that wildlife can find its way back to the water.

I hope we have an Indian summer, with warm days and overnight rain, which is what gardens need at the moment. Enjoy the start of the autumn colours,

Sally