October Gardening News Letter

WHAT a beautiful month September has been. I returned from holiday on the 6th and the sun seems to have been shining ever since. The odd drop of rain has helped the gardens and it is lovely to see them looking healthier and greener.
The down side is the weeds are still growing. October is one of the busiest times in the garden and I have given some tips, below, on what you should be doing. I always think of this month being the beginning of the gardening year.
I have had a busy time this month. I attended a wonderful seminar at my nursery. As most of you know, they grow almost specifically for designers and it was a delight to walk around the nursery looking at all the new stock. I shall certainly be including some new specimens in my Planting Plans. We were discussing the impact of continuing drought conditions and seeking solutions to this ongoing problem.
I also attended the results of the New Homes Garden Awards at the Royal Garden Hotel in London last Friday. It was a fascinating day, meeting up with old colleagues and making new contacts amongst the developers. It was a very grand occasion with a champagne reception, reasonable (should have been better!) food and entertainment. We could have done without the latter, which bordered on crass, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. My very dear friend and fellow designer won her category and took the most coveted award of Best Garden of the Year. I?d like to enter next year, but the criteria might be against me. It has to be a
garden in a new build property and I rarely get to do these.
If any of you know of anyone moving into a brand new property who would like their garden designed, please do let me know.
SEASONAL RECIPE:
Roast Tomato Soup
2 kilos of ripe tomatoes 2 Cloves Garlic
Sugar Olive Oil
Seasoning Stock
Lemon juice

Slice the tomatoes in half and place on a roasting tray in a single layer, cut side up. Crush the garlic and scatter over the tomatoes.
Season well and sprinkle over some sugar, then drizzle over the olive oil.
Roast for about 30 ?45 mins (180/Gas mark 4).
Remove from the oven. When they are cooled sieve over a bowl to extract all the juices.
De-glaze the pan with a bit of the stock or water, to get all
the juices up.
Add this to the sieved tomatoes and thin with more stock until you get the consistency you like.
Add a squeeze of lemon and more sugar until you find the taste you like.

You can stop at the first stage of this recipe and use the puree
of tomatoes in stews and casseroles.

SEASONAL TIPS
Continue to cut down the stems of perennials. After they have been in the ground for a few years some perennials really benefit from being split. This is the ideal time to do it. Cut them down leaving a few inches of stem and then dig up the clump. Tease the roots apart and either re-plant or pot up. You can be quite brutal using two spades back to back or even a knife if you come across thick roots. If you have autumn flowering perennials, such
as Asters, leave these until the spring to divide.
Remember to go and buy those sticks! When you have cut the perennials down, place a stick next to the plant so that you can identify what are perennials and what are weeds next Spring.
You can still take cuttings from shrubs and September and October are the best months for moving them if need be. If you don?t have time now, leave it until April next year.
Sew sweet pea seeds in long pots. If you plant them at this time rather than the spring, you will get the earliest flowers next year.
This goes for other hardy annuals, such as Cornflowers, Nigella and Larkspur.
Prune back young growth on Pyracanthas to expose the ripening berries.
Plant spring flowering bulbs, such as Tulips and Lilies.
This is the best month for repairing and planting new lawns.
For established lawns the best treatment is to aerate the whole area. There are gadgets available for doing this, but a good old- fashioned method is to use a fork dug into the lawn and wiggled around. This is very time consuming, but worth it. Then scarify and remove the debris to the compost heap. Top dress with a compatible seed mix together with soil or compost.
Prune roses if you did not do it last month.

VEGETABLE & FRUIT GARDEN
The tomatoes are still going strong. Trim the leaves to expose any fruits that might still be ripening. Use cloches to cover any lettuces, spinach and parsley sown in
late July. Plant spring cabbages and cauliflowers. Sow radishes and turnips to produce ?tops? for harvesting in spring and winter spinach for early winter and spring harvesting.
Spray fruits such as peaches, plums and nectarines to protect against leaf curl.
Remove fruit canes from soft fruit, such as raspberries. Cut them down to ground level and tie in the new canes.
Dismantle climbing frames and store away. Plant garlic for next year?s crop in June/July.
Continue to store apples. Pick up any fallen fruit to avoid disease.
Plant up bulbs in containers for next spring, either for displays in the house or garden.
I have just purchased another black compost bin from the council for the princely sum of