Rushing out to chop all your garden down and hard pruning however is not quite the answer!
Perennials; As in previous years we can often be in for an Indian ( late ) summer. So my advice would be;
- Dead- head your annuals unless they begin to look really sorry for themselves - in which case compost them and their soil. Feeding them will prolong their life and vigour.
- Cut back the straggly perennials being aware that some will go on to produce attractive seed-heads that make impressive viewing through autumn even into winter. Honesty ( Lunaria - because the seed heads are moon-like), Scotch thistles, Poppies, Teasels and many grasses can all be striking viewing in a frost on a sunny morning.
- If the foliage is not diseased then think about laying it around the base of the more tender herbaceous plants from hot climates such as Agapanthus.
- If you have planned to make changes and improvements to your borders then start lifting and dividing your hardy perennials.
Bulbs; Now is the time to order or buy our bulbs but probably wait till the end of the month to plant them when the soil is a bit cooler.
Lawns benefit from weeding and feeding now. For the moss conscious, it is time to get on with the scarifying. Be realistic however - it is very hard to get the perfect lawn with perfect grass without an awful lot of hard work. With the weather as it is you can go ahead with repairs or laying/seeding lawns ( always use more seed than recommended on the package as the supplier usually assumes the soil will be near perfect as will the after-care!).
