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What To Do In The Garden In October

October 2, 2017 By Jill Anderson 2 Comments

I hope you’re enjoying the autumn colour, if you’re in this part of the world?  It almost makes me happy that summer is over.

I’ve got a whole list of things to do in the garden this month, there’s a mix of clearing out the remains of summer & preparing things for next year.

Firstly there are spring flowering bulbs to plant, it’s such a joy to see them poking their heads through soil in late winter.

I’ve got a board over on Pinterest with some of my favourite bulbs, you can see it here  for ideas & inspiration.

Roses need reducing in height so they don’t catch the wind & move around too much. if this happens, a deep pocket develops in the soil at their base & fills with water, which isn’t good for the roots, especially if it freezes.

gertrude jekyll rose flower, pink rose

Rose Gertrude Jekyll

There is of course a lot of leaf clearing to be done. Surrey is a very leafy place, & despite being in town, we’re surrounded by a lovely, leafy backdrop of trees. Turning them into dark, crumbly leaf-mould gives more purpose to collecting them all up.

Simply bag them up in plastic bags, re-using compost bags works well. Poke holes in the bags with a garden fork & tuck them away in a corner & they’ll quietly get on with decomposing. This may take up to 2 years, but it’ll be worth the wait, leaf-mould is such a good resource for the garden.

When it’s ready, spread the crumbly, rich stuff in a thick layer over bare soil as a mulch. Good soil makes such a difference, helping plants grow stronger & healthier.  

What To Do In The Garden In October-hardy annual flowers, dill flowers, white cosmos flowers

Annual plants from Higgledy Garden, growing in the walled garden at Port Eliot in Cornwall.

sunflowers-walled garden

sunflowers at Port Eliot

chelsea flower show-lupins, bronze fennel & aquilegia flowers

lupins, bronze fennel & aquilegia, I took this at The Chelsea Flower Show.

jostaberries picked from the allotment

Jostaberries from the garden, they’re a delicious mix of blackcurrants & gooseberries

It can be a stretch to think of picking sweet peas next year, but sown now they have a head start, flowering earlier than if you wait for next year to sow the seeds.

Now & through autumn, is the best time to plants shrubs & trees. It may not seem like it, but the soil is still warm & new plants aren’t stressed by blazing sunshine, & they have time to build up a good root system before next year.

We’ll remove the pump from the pond, store it in the garage & net the pond to keep falling leaves out.

I’ve cleared the tomato plants out of the greenhouse to make room for salad leaves & herbs. Pelargoniums have already claimed part of a shelf, it’s too early for a frost here, but I’m playing safe & getting them in from the cold before it’s too late.

Pelargonium Ardwick Cinnamon-white flowers

Pelargonium Ardwick Cinnamon

I’m planting garlic bulbs this month, ready for harvesting next summer. they’re nice & easy, once in I leave them to get on with the business of growing.

What To Do In The Garden In October-broad bean seeds

broad bean seeds

Although broad beans can be planted in spring, planted now they’ll be ready for picking in late May if the weather has been kind. It’s best to plant one of the hardier varieties, like ‘Aquadulce Claudia’ that’s tough enough to grow through winter.

Plant the seeds 23cm part, 60cm gap between rows, they’ll need support next year as the plants grow taller.

Having vegetables before they’re available to buy is one of the joys of growing vegetables, don’t you think?

Enjoy the rest of the month.

Jill

all photos: Jill Anderson

Related posts:

Using wood-ash in the garden My Garden & The War Against Slugs Growing Vegetables In Containers How To Avoid Watering Your Garden

Related posts:

Using wood-ash in the garden My Garden & The War Against Slugs Growing Vegetables In Containers How To Avoid Watering Your Garden
Filed Under: Blog, Gardening, Growing Food, Plants, Recycling & Sustainability

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Comments

  1. Libby Wilkie says

    October 5, 2017 at 12:13 am

    All your photos are just so lovely! And, I love that header: the small tag! So very perfect. I’m new to your blog and really enjoying looking around!
    I simply MUST order my tulip bulbs… I too have often waited too long and the choice is then limited. I’m very picky about them, so you would think I would learn. Ah well. Too many things to do.
    We lost 2 of the 3 Sky Pencil Hollies we planted in early May: the heat here was just too intense this summer. So yes, now that it’s fall we will replace them and give them a fighting chance . It’s still fairly warm here, and very dry, but it’s bound to cool down soon!

    Reply
    • Jill Anderson says

      October 12, 2017 at 8:17 am

      Thank you Libby, I’m glad you enjoyed looking round! I have only just ordered my tulip bulbs, as you say so many things to do! I hope your hollies do well, autumn is a good time to plant. Your blog is lovely, so light & bright!

      Reply

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Hello, I’m Jill Anderson.
This is where you’ll find good, solid information about gardening, growing fruit & vegetables and how to keep it all looking good.
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The healing, calming power of nature in one photo. The healing, calming power of nature in one photo.
These wonderful autumn colours won’t be around for much longer. But that’s ok, because now is what matters, & their fleeting beauty makes them even more precious.
It’s easy to see how being among trees & nature is so beneficial for our health & wellbeing. 
Have a great Sunday.
Savouring all the autumn colour, & doesn’t it lo Savouring all the autumn colour, & doesn’t it look spectacular with this bold front door.
Today has been hard work, after a lovely time last week in Norfolk. The north coast there is spectacular. Realising these last few months, that there are so many beautiful places here. 
Have a nice evening.
Charming glasshouse at Houghton Hall, Norfolk. Vis Charming glasshouse at Houghton Hall, Norfolk. Visiting to see the Anish Kapoor sculptures, which are amazing, but unprepared for the beauty of the grounds & garden. 
Such a treat, worth coming to Norfolk for this alone!
Hope you’re keeping well, & managing to smile some of the time. x
P.S. more of Houghton Hall & Anish Kapoor on my stories
We stopped off on the way home to pick blackberrie We stopped off on the way home to pick blackberries, after coffee & cake, sitting in the churchyard - the cafe was full, & the churchyard is a quiet, peaceful spot..... as you’d expect.
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One little advantage of lockdown is walking so much more, rather than using the car. Though it shouldn’t have taken something as momentous as this, for me to change bad habits 🙁
Hope you’re weekend is going well.
My hazel arch, a bit lopsided 🙄 using wood from My hazel arch, a bit lopsided 🙄 using wood from a random clump of hazel on the garden. Now looking much better covered in winter squash plants, so you can’t see just how ramshackle it is. I like to think it has a certain home-spun charm .

Great for small space gardening, imagine how much room you need to grow these without vertical supports.

I’ve got 2 Uchiki kuri, lovely nutty flavour.
1 Turks turban, for its flamboyant shape & colours, though it also tastes good.
One unknown, grown by my grandsons in their homeschooled science lesson.
Close-ups of the squash over on my stories.
Stay cool my friends x
I wanted to show you this lovely lily ( Lilium reg I wanted to show you this lovely lily ( Lilium regale) which is flowering right outside our bedroom window. 
It gets sun for about 4 hours only, you can order the bulbs now for planting in September. It’ll reappear every year & waft delicious scent around your garden, or through your windows.
Have a very happy Monday x
It’s British Flower Week, there’s a lot to be It’s British Flower Week, there’s a lot to be said for fabulous seasonal flowers that haven’t travelled thousands of miles ...... & are wonderful for biodiversity
A bit of rain, nice long days (it’s almost mid-s A bit of rain, nice long days (it’s almost mid-summer!) & it’s, mostly, all growing nicely.

Spinach, courgettes & garlic in shot here. 
Enjoy the rest of your Sunday x
Hope is a decision I’ve thought long & hard abou Hope is a decision
I’ve thought long & hard about how to view the tumult in the world we’re living in now. 
The only thing that works for me, is to choose hope.

It’s a tall order, but avoiding mainstream news & speculation helps avoid the anxiety, that’s often waiting in the wings.

One day soon there’ll be grandchildren clambering over this again.
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