Page 16 - Oundle Life September 2021

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SEPTEMBER IN THE GARDEN
September sees the dizzy warmth and long days of summer start to fade into the cool, damper, darker autumn months. It might feel a little deflating as the full-on burst of colour and energy our gardens rewarded us with
all summer starts to fade. However, autumn is a favourite season for many putting on
its own spectacular show of colour as leaves start changing their hue and ripe fruits weigh branches down.
Whilst the days begin to
shorten and the temperature
begins to drop overnight, the
days can still be summer-
like in their warmth. It is
therefore an ideal time to
get out in the garden and get
lots of jobs done whilst you
can. As long as temperatures
allow, plants such as Cosmos,
Zinnias and Dahlias will
keep producing buds and
flowering. The secret to
keeping them in flower is
daily deadheading. Don’t just snip the dead heads off as the name suggests, but cut at a leaf or side shoot to keep encouraging the buds to grow and bloom.
Remember those first signs of spring marking the end of the winter months? The wonderful sight of those sunny daffodils opening back around March? Well, now is the time to get your spring flowering bulbs bought from the Garden Centre and plant them. Daffodils, Crocus and Tulips can all be planted out once the soil has softened or planted straight into pots for a much welcome spring display next year.
September and October are the perfect time to repair or create a new lawn, either from seed or turf. Established lawns need a little TLC too to get them through the colder, darker months ahead. Increase the time between each cut and raise the height of the lawnmower blades. To
give your
lawn a proper
pamper,
scarify
then aerate
it before
applying a top dressing. Feed with an autumn lawn feed which will be high in Potassium and encourage hardier growth for the winter months ahead. All available now in the Garden Centre.
In the edible garden, tomatoes and peppers are ready to harvest. Pumpkins should be raised up a little so they don’t touch the ground. As the ground gets damper and wetter, any flesh touching the ground can start to rot. Autumn fruiting raspberries will now be ready to pick, and will usually continue until the first frosts and autumn itself truly arrives. www.thebarngardencentre.co.uk
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