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For the best plants and flowers, roses need attention all-year-round. AG gardening editor Kris Collins sets out the key jobs this autumn
Prune late-flowering types
My Rosa ‘The fairy’ was still flowering when the snow hit last year. This shrub rose is renowned for it’s long flowering period. Cold nights mean that many types will slow down, but others seem to enjoy…
It’s amazing what a bit of late sunshine can do to the garden. I think this year’s unusual weather – heavy snow at the start of the year, a sizzling April, drab summer and hot October – has confused a lot of plants in my garden. I have a Mahonia in full flower next to a skimmia in bloom –…
Increase your plant stocks by taking simple hardwood cuttings through October, says AG’s Michelle Wheeler
Hardwood cuttings are easy to take and, for most deciduous trees and shrubs, the best way to increase plant stocks. They are taken in the plant’s dormant season, best carried out after leaf fall, and before the plant starts to show growth in spring.
The material used…
Plants used:
1x Carex ‘Frosted Curls’, 1x Euonymus ‘Emerald Gaeity’, 2x heather, 2 x pot cyclamen (red and white), 3x cineria, 2x viola, 1x pansy
1) All winter containers should have drainage in place to prevent plants sitting in wet. I’ve used broken up polystyrene plant trays. If possible, also raise the pot on feet or bricks for increased drainage.
2) Mix some slow release fertiliser with multipurpose compost…
AG’s Emilie Griffin has got the bug for willow weaving and is now creating a fence/hedge or ‘fedge’
Here’s how to go about it:
Step1 Peg a strip of black membrane, 1ft (30cm) wide and as long as needed, to the ground. Once it’s in place push the edges into the soil with a spade. Start at the corners then move along…
AG gardening editor Kris Collins uses a selection of hardy herbaceous perennials to plant up a sunny border
Autumn is the ideal time to plant a border ready for the following year. Plants establish in the ground quickly, before the cold winter weather sets in and will take off quickly once spring arrives. Perennials can look sparse when first planted. But…
