It’s very mild and we’ve had plenty of dry days recently, it’s time to clear away the old courgette, squash and bean plants. Mulch the soil and plant broad beans, onions and garlic. It’s also the perfect time to plant fruit bushes, and in the garden bare root roses, shrubs and trees
Harvest
Start to harvest autumn vegetables. Parsnips, cabbage, kale and broccoli can be cropped as needed. Leeks can be left in the ground and harvested as needed.
Pick Brussel sprouts starting from the bottom of the stalk and work your way up, or harvest an entire plant and store it somewhere cool. Be sure to keep them protected from pests – slugs and pigeons are still on the prowl!
Celeriac will only tolerate light frosts, so harvest as and when you need them until colder weather is forecast, then dig them up and store somewhere dark and cool. Pumpkins, even if not fully ripe, should be harvested now and left in a dry place to finish ripening.
Though I tend to leave potatoes in the ground and harvest when needed, the general advice is to dig them up and store in a cool place as slugs and eelworms may eat them.
If you’re growing winter lettuces and salad leaves you should be able to harvest a few leaves here and there this month.
Pick any tree fruit and store, preserve and share!
Planting Fruit and Veg
You can still plant onions, shallots and garlic and broad beans for cropping next year.
It will soon be time to plant bare-rooted fruit canes, bushes and trees. Order now for delivery in a few weeks. Bare root plants are less expensive and are only available in the dormant growing season. Blackmoor nurseries are tried and trusted.
Divide, and replant, large rhubarb crowns, share any excess crowns. Mulch after replanting.
Bed preparation
As the beds are cleared of produce, clear weeds and put down a thick layer of compost or well rotted manure to improve soil quality for next season, and to protect the soil from degradation over the winter.
Collect leaves for making a leaf mulch compost to use next year. Collect fallen leaves while they are damp, chop them up with a lawn mower if you can, put them in an open weave bag, and leave on the soil. Worms will break it down to a friable mulch.
It’s also a good time of year for doing useful things like building and starting a compost heap and making new raised beds.
Pruning
I’ve had a few questions about pruning, mainly regarding fruit trees and bushes. I’ve given an overview of the main pruning times below. Feel free to email any questions. Remember to clean and sharpen your pruning tools.
Now:
Apple and Pear trees can be pruned now
Blackberry - cut back the stems that have fruited this year, and keep the new growth which will bear fruit next year
Raspberry - summer fruiting. They fruit on growth this year, so make sure you keep new growth and cut back the canes that have fruited.
Raspberry - autumn fruiting. Cut canes to the ground, fruiting will be on new growth in 2025.
Rhubarb - remove dead an decaying leaves, these can be used to mulch the crown. Mulch around the crown to feed it for next year and as frost protection.
Winter, Spring and Summer
Blackcurrant, redcurrant gooseberry - winter
Peach, cherry, plum (stone fruit) - wait until spring and summer
In the Garden
If you have waterlogged areas on the lawn aerate with a garden fork. Bare areas can be seeded. It’s still mild and the soil is warm so grass seed will germinate quickly.
Continue to cut back herbaceous plants, weed and mulch your beds and borders in the garden.
Bring tender perennials such as pelargoniums into a greenhouse/poly house or cool conservatory.
Autumn is the ideal time to plant new trees, shrubs and herbaceous perennials. The plant will establish a good root system during the winter. It’s also a good time to move plants. Just make sure you dig a big root ball, and don’t forget to water new plantings when there are dry spells.
Bare root roses are available now, along with trees. Add plenty of organic matter to the planting area, and if there are prolonged dry spells, new plants will need watering, particularly during windy periods.
Lift dahlias and gladioli and store in a cool dry place
Sow sweet peas in root trainers in the greenhouse/poly house or cool conservatory for planting out in the spring.
Continue planting spring flowering bulbs. Protect tulips from squirrels with a top dressing of gravel/grit, or winter annuals such as viola.
Wildlife
Watch out for mammals if you are tempted to use a strimmer
Bonfires are generally poor for the environment so instead try and compost what you can, and take all plastic waste to the tip.
Try and avoid buying new plastic based products if you can. And if you do need them, check if there is a recycled option.
Birds need fresh water for drinking and bathing, so add a bird bath in your garden or just leave a low bowl of fresh water.
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