In The Garden October Garden To-Dos

Clearly defined 'rooms', bold drifts of colour and great use of lighting give this garden a modern feel

THE ESSENTIALS

October - the most beautiful and exciting month! The garden springs to life, roses are budding and forgotten favourites start to show themselves again.

• Time to get your lawn into shape correct small problems now before they become big ones! Deal with bald patches by replacing them with healthy grass sods (of the same species of course!). Plant Wonder Lawn or Penny Royal in areas where lawn is going to struggle.

• Clean up winter-flowering succulents, such as Echeveria and Kalanchoe, and divide and replant their babies in other parts of the garden.

• Sow summer-flowering annuals such as Cosmos, marigolds, Lobelia, Zinnia and sunflowers.

• Step up the mulching in beds and containers as the daytime temperatures start to climb.

• Plant some pretty groundcovers around your roses - they act like a living mulch, keeping the ground cool and retaining water.

Good choices are dainty Geranium incanum, Scabiosa and Bacopa trailing varieties.

• Prune fruit trees and roses, removing any new growth sprouting from the mother stock, below the graft.

• Clip and shape citrus trees in containers.

• Plant the star of the October garden, Trachelospermum

In the Edible Carden

• Everything is growing fast, and both air and soil temperatures are rising. Veggies are thirsty and are starting to need regular watering for juicy leaves or flowers for fruit. Some parts of the country are in the grips of serious water shortage issues - how does a water-conscious gardener balance not wasting water and providing enough for plant health? Mulching is a great way to conserve water and cut down on weeds. Save rainwater as much as possible - either use commercial tanks or containers that will at least catch some water!