As soon asp possible start cutting the grass.  If it has not been cut since last autumn it will be long and tufted and hard work. Choose a dry day, cut it to 3 inches and remove the cuttings.  The same day, or soon after, cut it again to half its height.  Don’t put it out of your mind.  It will be easier to cut when short in about 10 days

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Use a ‘weed and feed’ treatment on the lawn.  The weedkiller and fertilizer are combined in one application

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Don’t waste time tying daffodil leaves into clumps after flowering.  It looks more unsightly and may cause damage

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House plants will need less watering if they are set outside for the summer, bring them back inside in early September

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Don’t start watering a newly sown lawn unless there is likely to be a drought. 

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Handy hints and tops

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Autumn can be a busy time in the garden, we have some great tips to make your life easier!

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When cleaning up the vegetable area cut the foliage off the peas and beans when they are finished.  Leave the roots in the ground where the nitrogen nodules they have produced will do some good

Continue to dead head bush roses removing the old flowers before they produce seed.  Cut the stems two leaves below the flower.  With a bit of luck you will be rewarded with a brilliant swan song of flower before winter

The grass is staying wet for longer in the morning.  Even on a dry day the dew is slow to disappear.  Cut the dry grass before evening on a regular basis.  Long wet grass is difficult to cut and will take longer than cutting it twice when short and dry

When you are planting bulbs in the flower border it is advisable to mark their position with a cane so that you don’t forget where they are and dig them up again when planting something else

Take stem cuttings of roses in early September by pushing cut stems straight into the soil where they can be left to root and develop for about a year.  Just take a length of stem, remove the soft tip above the leaf joint and cut below a joint at the base, removing all but the top three leaves.  Then push the 12 inch cutting into the soil to about half its length

Cover autumn-fruiting raspberries, blackberries and other cane fruits with netting to keep the birds away but remember to check the netting daily to ensure that no birds or animals are trapped

Hang wasp traps in the branches of fruit trees to prevent wasps from damaging fruit

Pick herb stems for drying or chop them up and keep them in ice cube trays in the freezer

Damping down the greenhouse becomes unnecessary as the month progresses.  It is best to do any watering or damping down earlier in the day so that the greenhouse is dry by evening.  Dampness during the cool nights could encourage grey mould

You can harden your lawn up for the winter by applying an autumn lawn feed which is high in potassium.  Do this after scarifying and aerating but before applying a top dressing

Leave some seedheads standing rather than cutting them back to provide food and shelter for wildlife

Use the skin of citrus fruit to attract and trap slugs and snails.  They will crawl into the peel at night.  In the morning shovel them up and dump

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It can take 12-18 months for leaves to decompose into leaf mould but if you add some nitrogenous fertilizer, granular or liquid, the bacteria will break them down more quickly

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