October Gardening Tips: How to Get Your Garden Ready for the Colder Months
There’s still plenty to do before winter sets in, from planting bulbs for next year’s colour to protecting tender plants from frost. Here are a few simple ways to make sure your garden heads into winter happy and healthy.
Plant Spring Bulbs for Next Year’s Colour
Now’s your moment to get bulbs like daffodils, crocuses, hyacinths and tulips into the ground before the frost arrives. Choose a sunny or partially shaded spot with good drainage, bulbs hate sitting in waterlogged soil.
Plant them about three times their depth, with the pointy end facing upwards, and cover them over with soil. If you’re short on space, try “lasagne planting” in pots layering different bulbs at varying depths so they bloom in succession come spring. A few minutes’ work now will reward you with cheerful colour just when you need it most.
Tidy Up — But Don’t Go Overboard
It’s tempting to strip the garden bare at this time of year, but a little wildness can be wonderful. Cut back any faded perennials and clear dead leaves from lawns, paths and ponds, but leave a few piles in quiet corners, they make perfect winter shelters for hedgehogs, ladybirds, and insects.
Gather up fallen leaves for your compost heap or pop them in a bin bag with a few holes punched in, they’ll break down beautifully into leaf mould, one of the best soil improvers you can make at home.
Protect Tender Plants from the Cold
Before the first frosts bite, bring tender plants like geraniums, begonias and fuchsias indoors, or tuck them away in a greenhouse or conservatory. For anything that must stay outside, wrap pots with hessian, fleece, or even bubble wrap, and add a generous layer of mulch or bark chips around the base to protect the roots.
If you’ve grown dahlias, lift the tubers once the foliage has died back, gently brush off the soil, and store them somewhere dry and frost-free, ready to replant next spring.
A Cosy Garden for Cosy Days
October gardening is all about slowing down, protecting what you’ve grown, and setting things up for next year’s success. A few hours outside now will mean your spring garden bursts back into life when the weather warms and in the meantime, you can enjoy those crisp autumn mornings with a cuppa in hand, knowing your garden’s tucked up and ready for winter.
