From our Archive.. September Hints and Tips section…
It has been a very changeable Summer weather-wise, but crops, on the whole, have been early to ripen and reasonably heavy in my patch. Summer flowers have put on a wonderful show and if you keep dead-heading, will go on for a few weeks more. Day lilies in my garden have flowered very well despite hardly flowering at all last year
There are still the asters, chrysanthemums, Hederanthas (Schizostolis) and sedums to come into their own in September and October.
Here are some jobs you could do:
Harvest: Onions, main crop potatoes, sweetcorn, pumpkins and squashes. Apples and pears will mostly have been picked at the end of August this year. All apart from sweetcorn can be stored in a dark dry place. Sweetcorn cobs freeze well.
Autumn fruiting raspberries and beans will continue to need picking or they will stop producing more.
Collect seeds to share or keep for next year; store them in labelled paper bags or envelopes somewhere cool and dry. The garden Society runs a seed swap at their Spring Show and at the trading shed later.
Plant: daffodils, crocus, hyacinth and Muscari (wait until November for tulips); start to plant overwintering onions and shallots
Divide: herbaceous perennials that are overcrowded.
Take cuttings: of tender perennials like Fuchsia, Pelargonium, Salvias and penstemons and overwinter under cover.
Cut down: fruited canes of berries and tie in the new growth.
Lawns: scarify, aerate, top-dress and feed with a low nitrogen fertiliser …. or grow a wild flower meadow instead!
Dead-heading: One wants to tidy things up at this time of year, but hydrangeas need their dead flower heads to protect next year’s buds; many other seed heads are a valuable resource for wildlife and the foliage is home for many invertebrates over winter. Wildlife does not like tidy!
Most important: Find time to enjoy your garden and perhaps visit someone else’s for ideas.
Check out the Royal Horticultural Association : Gardening in September
….September is generally a cooler, gustier month than August and the days are noticeably shorter. While there’s not as much to do in the ornamental garden at this time of the year, if you have a fruit or vegetable patch, you’ll be busy reaping the rewards of harvest. It’s also time to get out and start planting spring-flowering bulbs… More tips from the RHS website