Rudbeckia and Aster at Ryton

What to do in the ornamental garden in October

Those cold, crisp mornings, darkening evenings and leaves carpeting the ground let us know that autumn has well and truly arrived. October can be a time when the garden is at its most romantic and beautiful. The autumn colours on so many trees and shrubs, combined with the rich variety of fruit, nuts and berries give the garden a rich pallet of colours not seen at any other time of year. The heavy autumn dews lay thickly on lawns and leaves and the sun’s rays reflect off these, illuminating the scene, and highlighting features in the garden which go unnoticed during the other seasons.

General tasks

• Rake up fallen leaves. Large quantities can be added to a leaf-mould bin. Smaller quantities can be bagged up and left to rot down.
• Give ponds a clear out, cut back excess growth of aquatic plants and remove pumps for the winter.
• Re-turf or re-seed worn areas of lawn.
• 
  Hedgecutting
• Complete the cutting of hedges.
• Lift and store tender bulbs such as gladioli, dahlias and cannas. Tender perennials such as salvias and pelargoniums should also be brought into a greenhouse. If this is not practical, cover them with a thick mulch.
• Bananas will need to be protected by now also. The best way of doing this is with horticultural fleece and bubble plastic. For more information, see our overwintering bananas page.
• Try to resist the temptation to cut all your perennials back before the winter. This will leave lots of seeds available for birds that will also predate on over wintering pests. Remember that ladybirds, spiders, frogs and other beneficial creatures need somewhere safe to spend the winter - so leave mulches in place, herbaceous stems uncut and odd corners uncleared as much as possible.
• There is always plenty to compost in the autumn, so try to avoid the lure of the bonfire. If your compost bin is full, move the contents out and cover with a sheet of plastic. This frees up the bin to start a fresh heap. Alternatively, buy or build new one.
  Garden Organic members can view our factsheets online:

  • How to make compost
  • Building a compost box
  • Buying a compost box

  Access to factsheets requires members' password. Find out more about Garden Organic membership here.
• 
  Water rhododendrons
  in dry spells
• Water camellias, rhododendrons and azaleas in dry spells. A shortage of water at this time of year can cause flower buds to drop next spring before they open.

Greenhouse

• Thoroughly clean the greenhouse, inside and out. Don't worry about sterilising all the surfaces - a good wash and scrub with a stiff brush will suffice. If you have a power washer the job will be very easy, but remember to do this on a sunny day and remove plants before you start, to ensure they are not damaged by the spray.
• Put up 'bubble wrap' to insulate the greenhouse over winter. Keep some cut lengths of fleece to hand, to cover vulnerable plants on cold nights.
• Give all overwintering plants a good check over for pests and diseases before bringing them indoors.

Lawn Care

• Reduce the frequency of your mowing as the weather cools and the growth of the grass slows.
• Raise the cutting height of your mower . This helps the lawn cope better with the cold winter months.
• Complete autumn lawn care, including scarifying, aerating and re-seeding. More information on autumn lawn care can be found in the September archive.

Ponds

• If you haven't already done so, cut back overgrown plants, and divide those that need it. Cover the pond with pea netting or similar to catch autumn leaves.
  Garden Organic members can view our factsheet, Troubleshooting in the Garden Pond
  
  Access to factsheets requires members' password. Find out more about Garden Organic membership here.

What to Plant in October

• 
  Bluebells
  
  
  Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens'
• Plant bulbs for flowering next spring. Try planting Narcissus (daffodils) in lawns or under trees for a natural look. Plant them in drifts, rather than singly and choose smaller, less showy types. Select an area where you can afford to leave the grass long in the spring until the leaves have done their work to build up next year's bulb. Other native spring flowers such as Bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta), Snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis) and Wood anemone (Anenome nemorosa) will give a natural look to your planting. Ensure that any bulbs that you purchase, especially native species are from a guaranteed source and not plundered from the wild.
• Plant up containers for winter display. Be original and include some herbs as well as the usual pansies. Small sized evergreen shrubs such as Skimmia japonica 'Rubella' can be planted in containers along with some crocus and later flowering miniature tulip bulbs for an extended display. The black grass Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens' planted with some orange coloured pansies will give a striking display with a feel of Halloween.
• Creeping rosemary, Rosmarinus officinalis 'Prostatus' is suitable for containers and has bright blue flowers produced from early spring onwards. The Latin name means, 'dew of the sea' referring to the droplet-like appearance of the flowers. Variegated sages, Salvia officinalis 'Icterina' and 'Tricolor', are both attractive and edible. Clumps of chives will add a spiky, structural effect and are tasty to snip for salads.
• Herbs like a free draining compost so add some grit and plenty of crocks at the bottom of your container to ensure good drainage.

Make New Plants

If we are lucky we won’t see any frosts till the middle or the end of the month. This gives us a huge opportunity to dig and divide lots of those lovely perennials, particularly those that to seem to have out grown their space. It is also an ideal opportunity to move any plants to a new position, may be something grew a bit taller than you expected and would be better used in a different place. Maybe some colours didn't work out how you quite wanted and a little shuffle about of a few plants will make a lot of difference. This is the month to do all these jobs.

• Find a plant your want to divide, cut it back to 25mm-50mm (1"- 2"). Then gently loosen all around it with a fork.
• If you are lifting a plant out on to your lawn, put a sheet of plastic down. This makes cleaning up after much easier and you don’t loose any valuable topsoil.
• When you feel it has been loosened round then get your fork and slide it under the plant and lift, you may need 2 forks (one from each side) if it is a large plant.
• Place the plant on the plastic sheet look for a natural line across the plant and with a sharp knife (an old carving knife from a charity shop is ideal) cut it in half.
• You can put the half you are replacing to one side for a minute. Take the other half and again look for natural lines across it and cut it in to as many pieces as you like. You may want to replant you pieces straight away in other parts of your garden.
• To replant, dig a hole slightly larger than your plant, add some home made compost to the hole and mix it in. Place your plant in the centre of your hole and fill in around and firm gently.
• Water plants in well, at least half a can each.
• If you want to pot any of your divisions up, find some appropriate pots and cut your pieces up to suit the pots.
• Use suitable potting compost. Do not use pure garden compost from your compost bin, this is a bit too rich, but it is ok to mix some into a multi-purpose compost
• Pot up all your pieces and water them in well. Stand them in a shady corner, water occasionally or when you feel they need it and give them away to your friends in the spring.

Star Plants for October

This month, many trees and shrubs are displaying their beautiful autumn colours, so we will be looking at some excellent and easy to grow specimens for your gardens.

Acer palmatum 'Garnet'


Rhus typhina


Cotinus 'Flame'


Cercidiphyllum japonicum

• Acer palmatum 'Garnet' is one of the most popular of the Japanese maples. It has stunning red-purple, finely dissected foliage. It only grows up to around 5 or 6 feet tall making it suitable for the smallest of gardens and can also be grown in a container. Grow it in a sheltered position away from strong winds in moist, fertile soil.
  
  
• Rhus typhina is a justifiably popular shrub. It is also known as the Stag’s Horn Sumach due to its soft velvety branches. By this time of year, the leaves have turned to a gorgeous orange-red and will really brighten up a dark corner of the garden. It will reach a maximum height and spread of around 15 feet.
  
  
• Cotinus 'Flame'. The common name for this small tree is the Smoke Bush because it produces long panicles containing hundreds of tiny flowers during the summer. From a distance these look like clouds of smoke emerging from the tree. In October the leaves will have turned from light green to a brilliant orange-red. It will eventually reach a height of about 20 feet.
  
  
• Cercidiphyllum japonicum var. magnificum puts on one of the best autumn displays of any tree. Its leaves change from green to yellow to bronze then orange and red. These array of warm colours have an almost toasted look to them and this is complimented by the smell which they give off as they fall – burnt sugar. When full grown it will make a fine specimen at 30 feet tall.

  Unusual plants can be sourced by using the RHS plantfinder on-line. There is a listing of organic nurseries too.

  Our organic guidelines give information on sourcing organic plants

  
  
  

Pest & disease watch

• Squirrels love digging up newly planted bulbs. Protect pots and new plantings with a cover of small mesh chicken wire now. Remove it when new growth is poking through the soil in spring.
• 
  Rose blackspot
  Diplocarpon rosae
• Rake up leaves under roses to prevent blackspot spores over-wintering in the soil. Affected leaves have dark brown or black, often coalescing, blotches on both leaf surfaces. Prune out infected shoots and remove any remaining leaves before they fall.
  Garden Organic members can view our factsheet, Rose blackspot for more details
  
  Access to factsheets requires members' password. Find out more about Garden Organic membership here.

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