Explore things to do in your garden every month
Gardening in October
October can be a glorious month in the garden, with clear blue skies and crisp days. Everywhere you look, the autumn leaves are a blaze of rich warm reds, oranges and yellows, a last extravagant explosion of colour before winter arrives. The days are getting shorter, so make the most of good gardening weather whenever you get the chance this month. Wrap up warm, get outdoors and enjoy your garden’s autumn display this year.
Things to do this month
Remove blinds and shade paint from greenhouses so that overwintering plants get as much light as possible.
Clean and disinfect greenhouses.
Clean and disinfect greenhouses.
Tidy up beds and borders, clearing away dead and dying leaves.
Rake up fallen leaves and collect them to make leafmould
Net ponds to stop leaves falling in.
Clear ponds of excess pond weed and blanket weed.
Put pots on pot feet to avoid them getting waterlogged in winter.
Put up a bird feeder to support your garden birds through the winter months.
Take cuttings from deciduous shrubs.
Prune climbing roses once they have finished flowering.
Cut tall bush roses back by a third to avoid windrock.
Clear up fallen rose leaves and dispose of them to stop the spread of black spot.
Clean garden furniture before you store it away for the winter.
Give the barbecue a thorough cleaning before putting it away for the winter.
Feed wild birds with high-energy bird foods to help them through the autumn and winter.
When water temperatures drop below 21°C (70F), feed fish with easier-to-digest, wheat germ foods.
Give tools a thorough clean before you put them away for winter.
Slugs and snails may become more active in cooler, damper weather – so protect plants with suitable controls.
As perennial weeds start to die back, this is a good time to give them a final application of weedkiller.