A vibrant garden society active in Church Crookham, FLEET, Hampshire. We hold several annual events and shows and run a comprehensively stocked stores hut with discounts for members.November Gardening Tips
The colour of trees in the garden and wider countryside turns to gold, red and bronze, quite lovely on a sunny day. The ground beneath looks gold plated.
I am not fastidious about raking leaves up immediately – they will do no harm for several weeks and will provide food for worms. Left too long, they will start to damage grass and provide slug heaven, so I will have to pick them up and make leaf mould!
Dead leaves in the pond should be removed with a rake or net, but leave some as a habitat for invertebrates. Put the extracted leaves near the pond for a day so that any creepy-crawlies can get back into the water.
At this time of year, the fruiting bodies of fungi (toadstools) are visible. It is worth remembering that leaves are broken down mainly by fungi, liberating nutrients. The vast network of tiny tubes (mycelium) from which the toadstools arise is of great importance to the health of trees and shrubs. They live in a mutually beneficial relationship with the roots, increasing surface area for the uptake of water and nutrients. More is being discovered all the time. Fungi mostly only colonise a plant that is already damaged or stressed.
Jobs to do
Regularly check stored apples for rot
October Hints and Tips
This rose won 1st prize at the Summer Show
2018 has produced an extraordinary crop of top fruits and they have been ready to harvest from late August. o you have probably already stored the sound fruit in newspaper in a cool shed or garage. However, it has been too dry for autumn raspberries to thrive. I am so disappointed.
Other jobs you could do
Remaining tender fruits like squashes, pumpkins and turnips need to be brought indoors to protect them from frosty nights. You can plant autumn onions, garlic and overwintering broad beans.
Rake up and dispose of rotting fallen fruits and leaves from apples and pears – it is best to burn or green bin them to reduce fungal infection next year. Grease bands will prevent female winter moths climbing up the trunks to lay their eggs. (Their larvae eating their way out of the fruit is one cause of rot.)
Rhubarb that has been in place for five years should be lifted and divided. Discard the centre and replant the outermost vigorous portions.
Pot up and bring under glass Fuchsia, citrus and Brugmansia; dig up tubers of tender plants like Dahlia and Canna once the foliage has been slightly blackened by frost – place them in a frost free, dry place over winter.
Lift and divide herbaceous perennials and cut back top growth UNLESS they are very tender like Penstemon, Gaura or hardy Fuchsia, where the top will protect the new growth from frost. Unless you are obsessively tidy-minded, it is kind to leave some seed heads for the wildlife.
Take hard wood cuttings of roses and other deciduous shrubs like Cornus, Forsythia and Philadelphus. It is a good idea to reduce hybrid tea roses and Buddleia by a third to prevent wind rock; for the same reason prune old growth of climbing roses and tie in new shoots of ramblers.
Tel: 07801 714662 
Email: chairman@ccgsoc.org.uk