September is my favourite month – the summer still lingers but clearly Autumn is on its way. The leaves are starting to fall and the sun rises later but after your month off in August, now is a good time plan any Autumn work (paths, edges, new borders). In other words… plenty to be doing and plenty to be enjoying.

Things to do:

  1. If you are keen on having fresh flowers in the house on Christmas Day then plant your “prepared” hyacinth bulbs by the 24th and earlier if possible. Hyacinths usually flower in spring however by manipulating the storage environment (temperature) the bulbs they are “prepared” and so fooled into flowering in December.
  2. Give your lawn a manicure – removing the dead growth (“thatch”), improve drainage, top dress (compost and lawn sand), and feed.
  3. Gather those seeds – don’t forget to label the packets(!) and keep them in a cool place.
  4. Any crops fully grown in the ground (e.g. carrots, beetroot etc.) should be lifted and stored.
  5. Start to gather those apples and pears, any with damage can go straight into a pie, otherwise they can be stored in a cool dry place – not touching one another and checked/turned now and again.
  6. Plant any new strawberry plants or pin strawberry runners into a small pot of compost so you have a nice new plant for next year.
  7. If you are still using your greenhouse, remove the shading and give the glazing a quick clean to maximise the light.
  8. Take cuttings of any tender perennials – much less hassle than trying to cosset them indoors over the winter months.
  9. If you have any sunflower heads left over either leave them out for the birds or why not harvest them for you and yours. Harvesting is a bit of a mess but it will keep the kids occupied for a while.
  10. Now is a good time to sow hardy annuals (e.g. calendula) and wildflowers (e.g. cornflower) so they get a head start on the riff-raff next year.

What others suggest

There are plenty of other things you can be doing this month and below are links to a few of those with suggestions: