September Gardening Tips: Turning Over a New Leaf
Come September, you’ll notice a real shift in the garden. After one of the driest, warmest summers, this month brings a welcome change. The garden has weathered a lot, but with cooler temperatures and shorter days, we’re finally seeing some respite. Any rain by now should have softened the soil, which, still warm, makes it a good time for planting and establishing new plants, while seedheads, berries and early autumn colour provide new interest.
Use the September cooldown to prepare for autumn and winter. A few jobs will set you up nicely.
Q&S’s Garden Notes – September
7 tasks this month:
- Tidy up hedges: Give shaggy hedges a prune now to keep them looking sharp right through to spring.
- Plant while soil is warm: It’s a good time to establish new shrubs and perennials this month, while there’s usually more natural moisture around.
- Get bulbs in: Plant spring-flowering bulbs like daffodils, crocuses and alliums now for a colourful start to next year.
- Don’t stop watering: Newly planted plants and containers still need water in dry spells - preferably with collected rain or grey water - don’t assume cooler weather means plants no longer need water.
- Leave some seedheads: They’re a valuable food source and habitat for wildlife through autumn.
- Divide overcrowded perennials: It’ll rejuvenate established plants and give you new plants for other areas of the garden.
- Resist being too tidy: Stems, seedheads and leaf litter offer valuable shelter and food for insects – a little wildness goes a long way.
Our gardening teams are working in commercial gardens and multi-use settings every day, tending gardens, parks and green spaces across the South East, and we’ve got lots of tips and insights to share.
If you want expert help building biodiversity into your green space and the kind of natural habitats wildlife would choose, contact
