The September Garden

The days are getting shorter and the year is moving on. So many of the late-summer and autumn-flowering perennials seem to come in warm shades, as if in preparation for the blazing autumn leaf colour that deciduous trees will soon display. 

This is the main month to plant Spring Flowering bulbs! Bulbs always look good growing in turf, why not go for an informal drift. Scatter a handful of bulbs over the area, and plant them where they land, generally planting them two or three times their own depth and add fertilizer. 

Cultivate clay soil as it should be reasonably dry and slightly easier to work over. Sow hardy annuals to flower next year, like California poppies for example. 

Continue to care for bedding plants by deadheading and feeding to extend the display throughout September, keeping the colours in your garden thriving!

Take a notebook and bring it with you on rambles around the garden, jot down how plants have performed and decide if they need to be moved, or just completely taken out. Think up new planting schemes that work for your garden, taking into account what grows well, and what you haven't tried yet. And don't forget the effect foliage creates too, different leaf shapes, colours and sizes. 

It may be the end of the summer, but the beginnings of autumn provide an eloquant change of colours, and a renewed feel to the garden.