Jobs to do in the Garden in September

– Prune late-summer flowering shrubs like buddleia, fuchsia, hydrangea, and roses now. You can also trim climbing and rambling roses if they’ve finished blooming, unless they are repeat-flowering varieties.

– Divide herbaceous perennials to maintain their health and to increase your plant collection.

– Help your courgettes, pumpkins, squash, and marrow finish ripening by removing any leaves that block sunlight from reaching the fruits. If any fruits are touching the ground, raise them with a piece of slate or wood to prevent rotting.

– Protect your brassicas from birds and cabbage white butterflies by covering them with netting.

– Sweep your patio, driveway, and paths, and consider using a treatment for mould, mildew and algae if needed.

– Sow kale, pak choi, mizuna, and lamb’s lettuce for a winter harvest. Also, sow hardy peas and broad beans for an early harvest next year.

– Watch the weather for early frosts. Stock up on frost fleece or bubble insulation now to protect your tender plants when frosts are predicted.

– Enrich your soil by adding a layer of Gro Green Compost or soil improver to your beds, which will provide nutrients for the next growing season. You can either lay it on top of damp soil or dig it in.

– Perform essential lawn maintenance this month. Rake to remove thatch, aerate with a garden fork, and re-seed any bare patches.

– Keep an eye out for pests in the greenhouse and garden, and treat them immediately with your chosen method of bug control.

– If you haven’t already done so, summer prune your apple trees. This will encourage a good yield next year and beyond.

– Fill containers with autumn and winter flowering bedding plants like aster, chrysanthemum, colchicum, cyclamen, liriope muscari, rudbeckia, and winter flowering viola.

– Main crop potatoes should be ready for lifting now. Store them in a cool, dark, and well-ventilated place, ideally in a paper or hessian bag.

– Sow hardy annuals such as cornflower, pot marigold, forget-me-not, flax, larkspur, scabiosa, and poppies to enjoy blooms next year.

– With cooler nights ahead, you may need to start closing your greenhouse vents to retain warmth.

– Thoroughly clean and disinfect your bird feeders and tables, then refill them with bird seed to support birds through the winter.

– Protect your pond from falling autumn leaves by covering it with netting.

– As the weather changes, becoming wetter and windier, it’s crucial to protect and support newly planted saplings. Tree stakes and ties work well, or you might consider using tree guards. While safeguarding young trees, it’s also a good time to tie climbers and vines to their supports if you haven’t already done so.

– Deal with weeds now using a concentrated weed killer, as they are often more susceptible in autumn.

– If your clay soil is heavily compacted, consider improving it with gypsum or horticultural grit before the soil becomes too wet or frozen to work with.