5 garden jobs you need to do this month to prepare for wet autumn weather – including essential cleaning task
AUTUMN is just around the corner which means there are a few gardening jobs to be done that you shouldn’t put off.
While you may still be clinging onto summer, it could be time to start thinking about how to store your furniture and the ideal time to remove weeds ahead of chillier months.
Experts at online home store Wayfair have created the ultimate guide on how you can prepare your property and garden for the colder months.
Here are the five things you should get into in the next few weeks…
Daniela Venturini, Art Director and Trend Forecaster from Wayfair UK, comments:
1. Remove weeds and debris
As summer comes to a close, it is the perfect time for you to make the most of the last bits of sun and get ahead of maintaining your garden for autumn and winter.
One of the easiest ways you can do this is by removing any weeds and dead or dying plants from your garden.
Weeding your garden now not only makes your garden look more aesthetically pleasing throughout autumn but will make your garden much easier to maintain next spring.
2. Clean garden furniture before autumn hits
Whether it is patio sets, cushion covers or barbecues, properly cleaning and storing items throughout autumn and winter not only keeps your garden furniture looking pristine for next summer but can also extend their lifespan.
Outdoor furnishings such as cushions often become water-stained over the summer months.
If they are not cleaned properly before storing can harbour mould and mildew and leave your outdoor furniture looking drab by next summer.
So, ensuring that your garden furniture is thoroughly cleaned and stored away by autumn can ensure your garden stays in great shape for a summer full of hosting next year.
How to clean your garden soft furnishings
CLEANING your outdoor furniture and furnishings is a relatively easy task, and requires household items already in your cupboards.
Here’s what you’ll need, according to gardening expert Daniela Venturini from Wayfair…
What you’ll need include:
- A soft bristle brush
- A bucket of warm water
- Mild laundry detergent or washing up liquid
- White vinegar
- A clean damp microfibre cloth
- A clean dry towel
- Clear your furniture of excess debris
Before cleaning your outdoor furniture ensure that the surfaces are free from excess debris and dirt from your garden, and remove any outdoor cushion covers where possible, as this will make the cleaning process much easier.
- Wash down furniture with warm soapy water
In a bucket of warm water, add a few drops of mild laundry detergent or washing up liquid to create your cleaning solution. For any tougher stains, such as harsh water stains or mildew, apply undiluted white vinegar to any stains and let it sit for about an hour in the sun.
3. Use a soft bristle brush to rub away stains
Using a soft bristle brush, gently rub your cleaning solution onto your garden furniture in small circular movements. After scrubbing, take a clean damp microfibre cloth and ensure that all detergent and soap suds are removed from your garden furniture.
After cleaning, take a clean towel and absorb the majority of moisture off your garden furniture and then simply leave in the sun to dry.
3. Store away garden furniture
Once your garden furniture is clean and dry, ensure that you are storing your garden furniture in a sheltered area away from the elements.
Sheds and outdoor storage containers are some of the best storage solutions for your outdoor furniture due to the protection they offer from the weather.
4. Move potted plants indoors
As summer comes to a close, the temperature begins to drop and the nights get longer, it’s time to consider moving your favourite potted plants that have been the centrepiece of your garden all summer, into a sheltered location.
Like us, plants can be sensitive to the cold, so need to be protected from the cold as the temperature drops, whether it be indoors, in a greenhouse or cold frame.
5. Clean gutters
Cleaning your gutters before autumn is a great way to minimise the risk of blockages over the colder months.
Blockages in your guttering can be detrimental to the foundations of your property, as a blocked gutter can lead to overflowing and leaks, which can be extremely dangerous, especially in frost.
If you’re looking for jobs to do in the garden in September, Gardening Editor, Veronica Lorraine has a list for you to tackle.
September gardening jobs
With September starting, so does autumn, and The Sun's Gardening Editor Veronica Lorraine has a few tasks to keep you busy as the summer sun winds down.
1. Starting thinking about Spring bulbs
Its early bulb time! As well as the more traditional daffodils, crocuses, alliums and bluebells, try snake-head fratillaries for something slightly different.
2. Remember the bees
Make sure you’re still looking after the bees with autumn flowering pollinators – like sedums, honeysuckle and asters.
3. Dig and enjoy your potatoes
Maincrop potatoes are ready to dig up – make sure you get them all so they don’t get slug damage.
4. Change your lawn mowing schedule
Raise the height of your lawn mower and start to reduce the amount of mowing you do. GIve it an autumn feed, especially if you didn’t get round to it in Summer and start to rake to remove thatch.
5. Plant out new perennials while the soil is still warm.
6. Take salvia cuttings
It’s as easy as cutting a shoot tip above a node and chucking it in a glass of water to see if it sprouts roots. Especially with tender Salvias which wont survive the winter.
7. Keep camelias well watered to make sure that buds form next year.
8. Keep on deadheading and watering your hanging baskets
They should keep going until the first frosts.
9. Get pumpkins Halloween ready
Remove any leaves shading pumpkins to make sure they’ll be ready for halloween – and make sure you keep watering them, they’re very thirsty.
10. Check on your pond
Net your pond to stop it filling with fallen leaves when the trees start to drop.