With the clocks having gone back and dark descending ever earlier November can seem like a month for gardeners to start hibernating. However, there will be days when it is lovely to get out and time invested now will yield rewards next spring and summer. Generally the soil is still quite warm in November and you can take advantage of this by planting and moving shrubs and perennials and renovating lawns.

Nowadays, container grown plants are available all year round, but bare root plants, including roses become available in November. These are often significantly cheaper and specialist nurseries will offer a wider range of plants than are generally available through garden centres. You can plant both container grown and bare root plants throughout November unless the soil is waterlogged or frozen.  Getting plants into the ground as soon as possible will give more time for root development and better displays next year.

Making sure that there is space, and the right conditions, for roots to develop is really important and the RHS website provides a really good guide to shrub planting.

Similarly, if you have a shrub which needs to move to a new home, now is the time to do it. When lifting it, make sure that you retain as much of the root ball as possible and cut back excess top growth to reduce the strain on the roots. Prepare the new planting hole well and use mycorrhizal fungi on the roots. Firm the shrub in and then give it a good soak. Remember to keep it watered throughout next spring and summer.

Even though we say this every year, don’t forget that November is tulip planting time. These later flowering bulbs bring a real sense of opulence to gardens in the later spring. You can of course also keep on planting all the other spring flowering bulbs

The ever-shortening days of October leave no doubt that autumn is here. However, warm days in the early part of the month can seem like a last bit of summer, while frosts at the end signal that winter is on the way. This is a month for enjoying the last of this year’s displays, while preparing for next year.

Flowers like Dahlias, Echinacea, Rudbeckia and Gaillardia will all keep flowering until the first frosts, so keep dead-heading.

A Cookham flower border in mid-October

Adding winter bedding will brighten up bare patches left by the removal of spent summer bedding or the dying back of herbaceous perennials as colder nights start to bite.

Roses may well still be flowering in October, but growth is likely to be getting weaker, so it is a good time to reduce the height of plants. Take them down by about a third so that they won’t rock in winter winds and disturb the roots. Clear away fallen leaves to prevent black spot spores overwintering under the plants.

As grass growth slows down, it’s a good time to apply an autumn treatment. Proprietary autumn mixes contain less nitrogen (so less leaf growth) and more phosphorus (for root growth) and potassium (for winter hardiness). Scarifying and aerating will also help to prepare the grass plants for winter by allowing both air and light to reach the base of the plants.

In the kitchen garden it is harvest time for hard-skinned squashes and pumpkins and the winter vegetables like parsnips, leeks and cabbages will all be good now.

Squashes Curing ready for storage

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Looking forward to next spring, you can plant broad beans, garlic and onions now and they will develop strong roots in the warm autumn soil and give you a racing start for next year.

After last year’s hiatus the village show is going ahead this year (at least it is at the time of writing). Saturday the 18th of September is the big day and don’t forget that there are cooking and handicraft classes and a special children’s section as well as the traditional fruit, vegetable and flower classes. The more entries there are, the better the spectacle in the hall.

There are classes for a wide range of fruit, vegetables and flowers.  Some like giant vegetables, potatoes and carrots are a bit more demanding of growers’ skills, while others like tomatoes and chilli peppers are ideally suited for the beginner.  The “Any Other Vegetable” and “Oddest Shaped Vegetable” classes give you the chance to show off the wierd, whacky, spectacular and not quite right.

A new class making its debut a year late this year is for a basket of allotment produce. With three different allotment sites in Cookham, there ought to be plenty of people who can have a stab at this “no rules” class.  Can anyone beat this offering we saw at the Malvern Autumn Show a couple of years ago?

A Trug full of Produce

Entry Forms are in the Cookham Dean Fete programme or from the new organiser Helen Philip (07549 519246 helenphilip@hotmail.co.uk). Entry forms need to be with Helen by 6pm Thursday 16th September at 50, Whyteladyes Lane Cookham Berkshire SL6 9LP with entry fees (50p per class).

The show is a competition, but a very friendly one and all entrants whether new or experienced are welcomed with open arms. Staging takes place from 9am to 11am on the Saturday morning and there will be lots of friendly and supportive people around to help any newcomers and indeed old stagers who can’t remember how to assemble the flower vases (guilty).

If you’re not entering this year, pop in and have a look and either be inspired by your neighbours or convinced that you could do better yourself next year. Finally, make sure that you are around for the after show auction to get the chance to buy the very freshest and most local of produce.

In an odd year for weather, July seemed to promise that a hot high summer is on the way (at least at the time of writing). So, first and foremost use the summer to enjoy your outdoor spaces. Whether entertaining or simply sitting and watching the world go by, make the most of it. From our bench we can smell lavenders and roses, watch the bird feeder and admire our high summer colour with Dahlias, Cosmos, Penstemons and Gaura all in bloom.

Back Garden Bench Aug 2020

However, there are plenty of things to keep you occupied if you choose. You could summer prune Wisteria – trim off the whippy new shoots, cutting back to 7 buds (approximately) from the main stem to encourage flower buds for next season. Once the bees have finished Lavender and Hebes can be lightly trimmed to keep them tidy. Take off the spent flower heads plus a little bit of the new wood. This helps to keep the shrub to shape and helps to encourage bushy growth for next season’s flower stalks.  Do avoid cutting into older wood on Lavender as they will struggle to rejuvenate from that.

The wet weather of early summer this year means that grass probably still needs regular cutting , but if the weather is dry raise the blades of the mower a little to reduce stress on your lawn.

Rambling roses only flower once. Now that they have finished, prune them back to tidy up the framework (many ramblers are extremely vigorous and will soon get out of hand). Some ramblers have beautiful hips, so let these develop for autumn colour and wildlife food.

In the kitchen garden, the main job is to keep picking and eating. Courgettes, beans, and salad leaves will all benefit from regular cropping. In the greenhouse peppers and aubergines are starting to fruit and tomatoes should be cropping heavily by now.

Rosa Bianca Aubergine Aug 2020

Aubergines Aug 2020

Tomatoes 5 Aug 2018

If you are lucky enough to have too much produce to eat it all fresh, preserving helps to extend the eating window. Some produce is ideal for simple freezing (e.g. beans), but others like tomatoes can be cooked and frozen to give a taste of summer in the dark winter months.

Summer is here and hopefully your hard work in earlier months is paying off. July is a time to start reaping the rewards whether in fragrance and blooms or “treasure” from the kitchen garden. A bit of light maintenance this month will keep your growing productive.

Spring flowering shrubs (like Forsythia, Weigela and Philadelphus) can be pruned now. While shaping the plants, cut out older flowered wood as next year’s flowers will form on this summer’s growth. For Wisteria cut out the new long, whippy growth, taking it back to 6-7 buds.

For summer flowering shrubs and bedding plants keep this year’s flowers coming by dead-heading. Flowers like sweet peas, Dahlias and repeat flowering roses all respond well to this treatment. Picking your favourites to make fragrant and colourful indoor displays also helps to prolong flowering.

Sweet Peas

Dahlias 26 July

July is a month for treats from the kitchen garden. Strawberries and raspberries are at their peak, early potatoes can be dug as and when you need them, fresh peas are lucky to make it as far as the kitchen and the first beans, courgettes and tomatoes should all be ready. Once the foliage dies back lift garlic bulbs ready for storage (or indeed making garlic butter for your new potatoes). However, you’ll still need to monitor for pests, especially if you grow brassicas, the cabbage white season is now upon us.

New Potatoes

Multi-coloured Tomatoes

High summer is the time to look out for Box tree caterpillars. The first sign is often not the caterpillars themselves, but the webbing that the moths leave amongst the foliage. You can now buy traps for the moths which will tell you that you are likely to have an imminent caterpillar problem.  This article on the RHS website gives a very helpful overview and includes suggestions on alternative planting options if the caterpillars are winning,

As most nestlings will have fledged by the end of the month, it is a good time to tidy up hedges without any risk of disturbing nesting birds. While caring for birds, top up bird baths to make sure that there is water easily available.

To prepare for a splash of cheerful colour in the autumn, July is the perfect month to plant Colchicums and autumn flowering crocuses.

With the longest day arriving this month, we are in prime growing time. The cold, dry spring has meant slower growth than in recent years, but the arrival of spring showers in May has got things growing, including the weeds.  So this month our thoughts have turned to weed control.

Remember a weed is only a plant in the wrong place and some can provide food and habitats for wildlife. With wildlife in mind, many gardeners are taking a more relaxed approach to weeds nowadays, often leaving wilder patches of garden quite deliberately. However, if you want to keep on top of weeds, there are many ways to combat them.

If conditions are dry then hoeing annual and ephemeral weeds can be very effective at this time of year, cutting the stems and allowing the plant tops to dry out can clear large areas quite quickly. Perennial weeds, especially those with long tap roots are a different issue and will need to be dug out, if you are looking to use manual techniques.

There are also a variety of weed killers available. These can be useful for persistent weeds coming through hard surfaces such as paths. Weed killers sold as “for paths” can include a residual herbicide such as Diflufenican which will also act as a soil-based herbicide. So be careful that any such product is not going to be washed onto planted areas. Systemic weed killers containing glyphosate can kill perennial weeds and break down quickly in soil, so can be used in areas that are to be re-planted.  There are also selective weed killers for use on lawns.

The legality of active ingredients in weed killers changes over time.  The Royal Horticultural Society website contains a useful list of current weed killers RHS-Weedkillers-for-Home-Gardeners.pdf.  This note also contains useful tips on using weed killers safely and effectively.

For veg patches, or new beds, you can use the “no-dig” approach of covering the ground with cardboard to deprive the weeds of light, then piling on thick layers of fresh soil or compost to provide a growing layer.