librarian2003 (librarian2003) wrote in weagardening, @ 2011-09-24 18:08:00 |
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Week 1 - The Garden in September and October
It's our first week, and we don't have a plant of the week for this week because group members are volunteering to do those each week! Well done everyone!
Our main topic is The Garden in September and October, but before we get there, we have one or two other things.
Sites of the Week
Each week, for those members who have access to the internet, I'll offer up some sites for you. Here is this week's selection:
GARDENING FOR PLEASURE
Sites of the week : Week 1
1 For information, a comprehensive gallery of dahlias, and shopping:
The National Dahlia Collection
http://www.national-dahlia-collection.c
2 For information, and for a gardening community:
Shoot Gardening
http://www.shootgardening.co.uk/
There are free subscriptions with restricted services, or subscriptions for less than £20 a year with more services.
3 For information, and a comprehensive gallery of salvias
Robin’s Salvias
http://www.robinssalvias.com/blue/defau
Jo Hanslip
September 2011
Then we had a look at some pictures. Most of them are of plants that some of us saw at Newby Hall, with a few little extras. There are also two pictures of the Long Borders at Newby Hall. Remember, this autumn, gardeners at Newby Hall will begin to replant the borders. If you want one last look at them as they are now, don't leave it too late.
The pictures are here, at Photobucket:
A Miscellany of Images
And then we at least started to look at The Garden in September and October. Here are the handouts:
GARDENING FOR PLEASURE
THE GARDEN IN SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER
September is often one of the most rewarding months of the year, with apples and pears now fruiting abundantly, as are autumn-fruiting raspberries, strawberries and blackberries. There are plenty of autumn flowers, and the weather is often better than in high summer. Although the days are growing shorter, they are still long enough to spend time in the evening in the garden. With the borders full to overflowing, make a note of which plants need moving, dividing or hard pruning later.
October is the time to enjoy the flaming reds, oranges and yellows of autumn colour. Acid loving shrubs tend to develop the most intense colour of all, so if your soil is unsuitable, try some in pots. Now is also the time to think about giving tender plants protection.
1 Soil cultivation
Digging, where required, and adding organic matter to the soil, should be done now. If organic matter is not well rotted, breakdown robs the soil of nitrogen. However, this is unimportant in winter when plants are not growing. Digging in compost, straw, lawn clippings or other plant stuff which does not contain seeds or perennial roots can be done now, and the soil will be ready for planting in the spring.
Where heavy soil needs digging to improve structure, complete this as soon as possible to allow maximum weathering over winter.
2 Trees and shrubs
Bare-rooted plants like trees, shrubs, roses and fruit bushes will be available from the middle of October onwards. This is the best time to buy them, especially mail order, whilst the soil is warm enough for them to make good root growth before winter. Prepare the ground in advance. Unpack the plants as soon as they arrive and give the roots a good soak for a couple of hours in a bucket of water and plant immediately. Plant roses and blackcurrants with an inch of the stems buried, to encourage plenty of growth from ground level. Plant all others at the same depth as they were in the pot. Trees will need staking.
Berries are an invaluable food source in autumn and winter for birds. They prefer red and orange, so pink, yellow or white ones are left until last – plant a mixture, to satisfy you and them.
Collect berries from trees and shrubs for autumn sowing.
Rake up fallen leaves, particularly where they are covering lawns and other plants. Leaves can be left to rot down on bare soil, in plastic bags or in wire mesh containers.
Tall deciduous shrubs such as roses, buddleia and lavatera which will be pruned in the early spring can be pruned back by one third to prevent wind rock. Pruning will be completed in spring.
There’s still just time to take semi-ripe cuttings. Shrubs such as berberis, buddleja, cistus, cotoneaster, elaeagnus, escallonia, forsythia, hebe, and spiraea respond well to this type of cutting.
Hardwood cuttings may be taken from deciduous shrubs at any time over the winter, but October is the best time. Put in a slit trench with sand in the bottom. Rooting takes about a year. Roses, particularly ramblers, rugosas, musks, gallicas and the old and species roses, take very well from hardwood cuttings.
Other, smaller cuttings, particularly from evergreens, have a good chance of success. Try Berberis, Buddleja, Box, Cistus, Cotoneaster, Eleagnus, Escallonia, Euonymus, Exochorda, Forsythis, Pyracantha, Ribes, Hebe, Hypericum, Potentilla, Cistus, Spiraea and Weigela. Take 2” long semi-ripe cuttings, place the pots in an unheated propagator and leave them in a light place, but out of direct sunlight. They should be rooted by next spring.
Shrubs such as rhododendrons, cotinus and hazel, which are difficult to propagate, can be layered.
Complete planting evergreens by the end of the month.
If you haven’t pruned your rambler roses yet, do it as soon in September as possible. Cut the old flowered stems down to the ground, tie in new growth and prune back the tips. Shorten back any sideshoots and tie those in, too.
If your clematis montana has covered the area you want it to cover, and is getting out of hand, clip it like a hedge – it will still flower well next spring.
Established shrubs are best moved in autumn, for the same reason as new plantings. Try to keep as much of the root system undamaged as possible. Where you must sever the roots, make a clean cut to encourage healing.
3 Ornamental garden
Grasses are often overlooked in favour of more colourful flowers, but many are in their prime in autumn. They are a beautiful and immensely varied group, and are tolerant of a wide range of soils and conditions. In autumn, many grasses look exceptionally beautiful with their handsome flower heads. Clean up pampas grass, but be sure to wear strong gloves.
By the end of September, where summer-flowering annuals have finished, plant spring flowering biennials such as wallflowers, polyanthus, sweet williams and daisies. Pinch out the tips of wallflowers and sweet williams to encourage bushy growth. Revitalise the soil first by forking in some garden compost and organic fertiliser.
From September to mid-October, sow hardy annuals where they are to flower next year, unless the soil is too heavy, when they can be sown in modules. Sow sweet peas in September for sturdy, earlier flowering plants – if you want the best varieties, there is still time to order from a specialist.
All spring bulbs can be planted in September, except tulips, which are best left until October or November – for them early planting encourages the risk of disease. Daffodils and narcissi should be planted before the end of the month to give them time to make plenty of root growth. Ornamental onions (Allium) are best planted in autumn.
Plant autumn-flowering bulbs, such as Colchicum (autumn crocus, naked ladies), autumn-flowering crocus species and cyclamen hederifolium. All these will grow under trees, shrubs and hedges.
Lift and divide hardy perennials if they have formed large clumps that need re-invigorating. Late flowering perennials such as Michaelmas daisies should be left until spring.
Herbaceous perennials provide much of the flower colour in the autumn garden. Michaelmas daisies are often a martyr to mildew, especially if overcrowded or in a crowded position so if you want to grow them without spraying, look for the resistant strains, such as Aster x frikartii ‘Mönch’. Asters look well grown with Japanese anemones, Sedum spectabile, Aconitum napellus (monkshood, which is poisonous if eaten) and Acanthus species (bear’s breeches)
Remove spent flower stems from gladioli, but leave at least four leaves to allow the corm to build up well for next year.
If irises suffered from unsightly brown spot fungal infection, remove all infected leaves before they start to die down, together with any debris around the plant. Spray with a fungicide if you wish.
If you have planted dahlias this year, choose which ones to keep.
Alpine plants may have outgrown their space – trim back as hard as necessary now. You can make cuttings from the prunings.
Many tender bedding plants, such as busy lizzies, begonia semperflorens, pelargoniums, fuchsias, and even petunias, can be potted up and brought into the house or greenhouse, where they will continue to flower.
Those which become leggy and woody, such as geraniums and marguerites, are better started from cuttings for next season, unless you wish to grow them into standards.
Tender bulbs and tubers, such as gladioli, dahlias, canna, chocolate plant (cosmos atrosanguineus) and marvel of Peru (Mirabilis jalapa) should be lifted before the first hard frosts and stored for the winter in a frost-free place. Alternately, if you have well-drained soil and have planted them deeply, try leaving them in the ground with a thick mulch
Continue pulling up weeds to prevent them shedding a late crop of seeds.
Cut back dead foliage any time from now to spring. Advantages of leaving the job until spring are:
Dead foliage provides winter shelter for ladybirds, beetles and lacewings
There will be more food for the birds
The border will look pretty covered in hoar frost.
Some of your plants may self seed
The dead foliage will provide some protection for the crowns of more tender plants.
The disadvantage is that the border can look slightly scruffy over winter.
4 Containers
Tubs cleared of summer-flowering plants can be planted up with biennials and bulbs for spring colour, or with evergreens for a winter display.
For a winter display, use small evergreens such as conifers, heathers and ivies, with early flowering spring bulbs and winter flowering pansies. There is no need to change the compost if you are using containers that held summer displays – just make sure that it is free of pests and revitalise it with some fresh fertiliser and some garden compost. Drainage is essential.
Plants in permanent containers can be fed during September, but avoid feeds with a high nitrogen content – this will encourage too much soft growth that will not survive the winter.
If you have shrubs in container displays, these may have become pot bound. Take them out, loosen the roots and cut off any thick ones that are circling the pot. Plant out in the garden, or into a larger pot.
5 Autumn Planting
Autumn planting is best for all hardy garden plants. Without needing to make lots of leaf growth, as they would in spring, they can concentrate on making roots, which they will do in all but the most severe weather, to get them off to a flying start in spring. Hardier evergreens, such as rhododendron can be planted now. Slightly more tender plants can be given protection and planted in spring. For bare-root plants, such as roses, fruit trees and hedging plants, wait until October or November when the new crop of plants is available. Prepare the ground thoroughly for planting, pulling out all the weeds and digging in plenty of well rotted manure or garden compost. At least an hour before planting, water the plant well while still in its pot. Make sure the hole to take the plant is large enough and mix in a handful of organic fertiliser. Put the plant in the hole, with the top of the root ball level with the top of the soil (with the exception of plants such as clematis which prefer to be planted more deeply). Backfill, firm in and water well. Stake trees. Newly planted conifers and evergreens can be killed by freezing winter winds. Make a windbreak of fleece, polythene or fine netting until spring.
6 Lawn
Applying an autumn lawn food will help struggling lawns. These are high in potash to strengthen the root system of the grass.
Lawns can be raked to remove thatch and aerated to improve drainage. Renovate any problem patches: reseed bare areas; repair edges by cutting out the damaged piece of turf and turning it through 180° so that the damage is on the inner edge, then fill with compost and reseed; and deal with bumps and hollows by cutting a cross in the turf then adding or removing soil as necessary. Large shallow hollows can also be dealt with by gradually adding top dressings of sifted soil – the grass will re-root into this.
Ailing lawns can be top-dressed now. Use a mixture of six parts sharp sand, three parts well-sieved soil and one part well-rotted and well-sieved organic matter, if you want to make your own, although you can buy a ready mix from the garden centre. For a sparse, worn lawn, grass seed can be added to the mixture.
Leatherjackets (crane fly larvae) start feeding on grass roots in September, slowing growth and causing yellow patches. If you have a problem, water on the biological control Steinemema, a nematode that destroys the grubs.
Mowing usually stops around the end of October.
Summer stresses have left lawns open to lawn weeds. Get these out either with a daisy grubber or with a spot-weeder, and, if necessary, put some grass seed on the bare patch.
7 Kitchen Garden
Herbs
If you haven’t done so already, pot up some of your favourite herbs, such as mint, sage, parsley and chives for winter use. Fresh herbs can be preserved by freezing. Chop, put in ice trays, cover with a little water and freeze. Alternatively dry by hanging fresh sprigs in a cool airy room or in a very cool oven. Strip the dried leaves from the stems and store in clean dry jars.
Tidy up the herb patch. Cutting them back will rejuvenate them and remove pests and diseases. Give a last feed in September. Take heel cuttings of woody herbs such as sage, rosemary and thyme. Divide clumps of overgrown herbs, such as chives, marjoram, mint and lemon balm.
Sow parsley and chervil in September to provide a spring crop.
Fruit
If using a copper fungicide on peaches and nectarines to avoid peach leaf curl, spray again around the time the leaves fall.
Prune berry fruits such as blackberries, loganberries and tayberries after harvesting. Cut out the old fruited stems and tie in new stems in their place. Blackberries and hybrid berries fruit on any wood older than one year. Cut stems that have fruited right down to the ground – younger canes bear more fruit. Remove the tips of canes to stop them rooting into the ground.
Currant bushes should be pruned:
Newly planted bushes: Prune to about 3 inches from the ground
Mature bushes: Remove a third to a half of the oldest branches
Where raspberries were newly planted earlier on this year, they would have been pruned hard back. For canes produced this year on those plants, take out the soft growing tip to ensure lots of strong growth in spring. Summer fruiting raspberries can be pruned now. They fruit on one-year-old canes, so prune fruited ones right down to the ground.
Complete summer pruning of apples and pears. Harvest apples and pears as they become ready. Early ripening apples don’t normally keep well, so leave them on the tree as long as the weather will allow, and pick them fresh as you want them. Windfalls and damaged fruit can be stored in boxes to put out for the birds in winter. Undamaged fruit should be selected for winter storage. Check the fruit regularly and remove any showing signs of damage or rot.
Fix grease bands around the trunks of apple trees to trap the wingless female winter moths as they climb the trunk to lay their eggs.
Plant new strawberries by the end of September so that they can establish well for cropping next year. Prepare the ground thoroughly by digging in well-rotted compost or manure and rake in some organic fertiliser – strawberries are a long-term crop on the same piece of ground. Space the plants 1½ x 2 feet apart with the crown of the plant at soil level.
Lift, divide and replant old clumps of rhubarb.
There is still just time to prune plums and cherries in September, but don’t leave it any later.
Vegetables
Seakale can be forced indoors or in the open ground, as for rhubarb, from now until January for an unusual winter vegetable. Use the blanched stems. Outside, forcing takes about three months.
Decide whether to sow broad beans or wait until spring.
Bend cauliflower leaves over curds to protect from frost.
Sow winter lettuce under cloches, in cold frames or greenhouse.
Prepare a site for asparagus to be planted next spring by removing all trace of perennial weeds and digging in plenty of compost or manure. Cut down asparagus foliage when it has turned yellow, then mulch the plants with well-rotted manure – asparagus is another long-term resident and needs plenty of food.
Pick marrows, pumpkins and squashes and leave to ripen in the sun for several days – this hardens the skins for winter storage. Store in nets in a frost-free place, where most will keep for 2-3 months.
Finish lifting and storing this year’s crop of onions and garlic.
Plant garlic, preferably before December. Choose a sunny site, and on heavy ground, plant on ridges of soil to improve drainage. Separate the bulb into cloves and plant each clove separately, with the top just below the surface. You can use cloves from the greengrocer, but specially grown garlic will ensure minimum trouble from eelworm. Where waterlogging is likely to occur, plant in modules in a sheltered spot for planting out in spring.
Lift and store roots such as beetroot, carrots and turnips. Others, such as parsnips, Hamburg parsley and swedes are best left in the ground – frost improves the flavour, although they may be attacked by pests. For storing roots, select undamaged ones, twist or cut off the leaves, leaving a few centimetres of stem, and put into a box in layers, with dry sand or peat. Store in a cool but frost-free place. Inspect regularly and discard those showing signs of rot.
Potatoes should be lifted on a sunny day and spread out on the ground for an hour or two to dry off. Store undamaged ones in a frost-free place.
Plant spring cabbage 6 inches apart in rows 1 foot apart. Use alternate plants as spring greens, leaving the rest to heart up. Fit cabbage collars to deter cabbage root fly. Alternatively, cover with fleece or insect-proof mesh.
Stake tall top-heavy plants such as mature Brussels sprouts and kale, to prevent wind damage. If you want sprouts to ripen all at once, cut off the sprout tops to encourage this – useful when freezing, or to clear the ground.
Pull up broad bean plants when they have finished cropping. The space can be used for winter lettuce, salad onions, radishes, and calabrese; or quick growing greens to harvest later this year such as spinach or Chinese green vegetables.
Remove flowers forming on globe artichoke plants – they haven’t time to produce usable artichokes and are diverting energy from the crown of the plant.
If you have outdoor tomatoes with fruit still to ripen, and worsening weather, dig the plants up and hang them, entire, in the greenhouse. This also works with chillies.
Storage tips – Choose containers that allow circulation of air to prevent rotting – boxes with slatted or mesh sides, and open weave sacks. Close weave fabric or plastic sacks create a humid atmosphere which encourages rotting. Hessian sacks are fine for storing potatoes, but paper sacks will do in a pinch. Do not overfill. Onions and garlic can be stored in strings or mesh bags, or even knotted into strings in old tights, as can apples. Winter cabbages and marrows can be stored in mesh bags. Beetroot and carrots will keep for months if you twist the leaves off and bury them in dry peat or sand. To keep apples for as long as possible, wrap them individually in parchment paper. All fruit and vegetables should be stored in a cool, dark, frost-free place.
8 Greenhouses and windowsill
Reduce watering and ventilation in the greenhouse as the temperature drops. Grey mould thrives in damp conditions and low temperatures. Pay attention to good greenhouse hygiene. Pick off dead or faded leaves regularly. Space plants out to allow good air circulation. If mould appears, remove all affected parts of the plant. Remaining plants may be sprayed with a copper fungicide, but beware of leaving them cold and damp. For watering, use water that is at the same temperature as the greenhouse. If you have capillary matting, remove and dry out for the winter -–plants won't need it, and it will keep the air too damp.
Growing bags can be used after the tomatoes are removed, for quick-growing crops such as lettuce, mustard and cress or radish, but will need feeding. Sow early crops of carrots, mangetout, peas and hardy lettuces in pots or growbags. They will be harvested in spring before the space is needed for tomatoes.
Compact strains of hardy annuals can be sown as cheap and colourful winter pot plants. Suitable subjects include Calendula ‘Baby Orange’, cornflower ‘Florence’, Godetia ‘Azaleaflora’, Clarkia ‘Snowflake’ and stock ‘Cinderella’. Bulbs can be planted in pots for winter colour.
Towards the end of September, prepare the greenhouse for winter, (or wait until cucumbers, tomatoes and other crops have finished). Choose a fine day and stand all plants outside. Remove shading, clean out gutters and down pipes, and wash the glass or polythene inside and outside. Replace any damaged panes. Wooden framed greenhouses may need treating with a timber preservative. Take out and clean and dry capillary matting, then put away for winter. Wash the staging with hot water and disinfectant. Remove debris and weeds on floor and under staging. Fix insulating bubble polythene and set up any heating.
Unheated greenhouses need not be short of colour over winter. As well as bulbs and hardy annuals, many hardy winter and spring flowering plants will flourish in tubs under cover. Daphne, Pieris and Sarcococca (Christmas Box) will fill the greenhouse with scent while others, like Camellia and Helleborus, will produce masses of beautiful flowers. Lots of worthwhile shrubs that are on the border of hardiness in the UK, such as Callistemon (bottlebrush), can be grown in tubs and over-wintered under cover.
During September take cuttings of tender perennials.
Bring in pot plants that were put outside for summer before the temperature, particularly overnight, falls too low.
Complete any re-potting and pruning of houseplants, or tender plants to be left in the greenhouse.
Examine plants for any signs of disease, over-watering or pest attack.
Reduce watering of orchids as the weather cools.
Stop watering cacti and succulents, except Christmas cacti.
If you have been resting cyclamen over the summer, start them back into growth now. Stand them in saucers of water to wake them up.
Plant lily bulbs for flowering next year.
9 Seed Purchases
Decide which seeds you need to purchase – have a good selection of seed catalogues, since range, quality and price vary considerably.
10 Ponds and pools
Feed fish in September to help build reserves for winter. From the end of the month, give fish less food as weather grows colder.
Tender plants such as water hyacinth will be killed by frost. Try putting a few young plants in a large jar or bucket with a little soil in the bottom and keep in a warm place until spring.
Now is a good time for an autumn clearout. As marginal plants fade, pick off seed heads to stop them seeding into the pool. Cut back the top growth of plants before they fall over and rot down in the water – that will minimise the amount of hideous sludge in spring. Thin out any overgrown oxygenators. Secure fine mesh netting over the pond to catch leaves from deciduous trees.
11 Hedges
In September, clip new growth for the last time.
12 Tools and sheds
Check that electrical installations, including lights, are working properly.
Clean up and store away all empty pots, etc ready for next spring.
13 Long Range Weather Forecast
The long range weather forecast from Positive Weather Solutions for Autumn 2011:
Remainder of autumn: some early warmth, rain, colder later
A variable October looks likely, with overall early cold to the north and north east of Britain being countered by some residual warmth coming northwards from Iberia and France. This contrast will lead to periods of heavy rain, even flooding, most notably in southern regions. The South will however also be favoured with some late season warmth, most welcome after such a cool summer. In the North, and occasionally in the East, some cooler, even cold weather can be expected to arrive. Where skies clear overnight this will lead to the formation of frost. Temperatures generally across the country may be close to the average, though this will mask the likelihood of a cooler North and milder South. Rainfall in the North will be below the norm but around or maybe above the norm in the South.
Overall November looks set to offer mild conditions in early month, and then perhaps late cold across the British Isles. Anticyclonic conditions look set to predominate, although this will not be the case everywhere throughout the whole of the month. The positioning of high pressure is likely to lead to drier than normal conditions notably in some southern and western regions. As the month progresses a colder northerly feed is likely to introduce the first real sleet and possibly snow of the season, more especially to northern and eastern coasts and uplands. Clear nights generally will lead to frost and fog – with the latter not easily dissipating next day. Temperatures overall will approach the norm, though some areas could be chillier. It is expected to be drier than usual for the month, perhaps markedly so.
The extreme long range predictions from Positive Weather Solutions are:
December 2011 - North-East/ South-West Split developing. Cold with threat of snow to the north and east. Milder to the south and west with rain/sleet at lower levels, temporary snow on higher ground.
White Christmas: 31%
January 2012 - North-East/South-West Split continuing to hold. Cold with threat of snow to the north and east. Milder to the south and west with rain/sleet at lower levels, snow on higher ground.
February 2012 - North and East holding on to the cold with the threat of further snow, but cold withdrawing. South and West seeing limited wintry conditions, temperatures on the average.
March 2012 - Wintry conditions holding on across the north for a time, so remaining largely colder than average. Further south, average temperatures, average precipitation.
Jo Hanslip
September 2009
Updated September 2011
Anything you want to talk about from this week?
Jo