Autumn brings a windfall
Leaves
Fallen leaves can kill lawns, clog ponds and make paths slippery. So gather them up to make leaf mould (a valuable component in seed and potting mix); or to add to composts to up the carbon percentage; or chop up the leaves with a lawn mower to use as a top dressing on vegetable and ornamental beds.
Leaves can take a while to break down in the compost, so do not layer them too thickly – no more than 10cm – then add green material, such as grass clippings or weeds.
A finer rather than thicker layer is the secret of good composting.
Some leaves break down faster than others. Speedier ones include ash, cherry, elm, maple and willow, while the likes of beech, birch, holly, hornbeam, and magnolia take much longer.
Ornamentals
Prepare anywhere new roses are to be planted in winter by digging in deeply plenty of well-rotted manure, then lime. Order new roses now before they sell out.
After trimming back tired or tatty perennials, and pulling out annuals past their ‘‘use by’’ date, lay compost over flower beds (go lightly over crowns of perennials), then a thick layer of pea straw which will start to break down over winter, adding much-needed organic matter to the soil. Pea straw will also help suppress weeds and conserve water.
Vegetables
Plant brassica seedlings, such as broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower and kale. As with sowing seeds, to ensure a continuity of supply, plant small numbers of seedlings every few weeks, rather than a whole lot in one go.
Broad beans may be sown from now until August, except in areas with harsh winters, where they are best sown from September. Soak the beans overnight, then sow in 150sq cm blocks (or double rows 20cm apart with 50cm between each set). Sow 15cm apart and about 5cm deep with the scar facing downwards. Water seeds well at sowing, then hold off until after germination – being large seeds, they can rot if watered too much.
Clear all old crops from the vegetable patch. Dig over and either leave fallow, or sow with a green manure to be dug in to the soil in late winter.
Fruit
Summer-prune stone-fruit trees. Clear away fallen and abandoned fruit under trees and any mummified fruit still hanging on branches.
Spray copper generously on fruit trees after leaf fall – and the harvest is over – to protect against bacterial and fungal diseases such as blast, brown rot and leaf curl.
– Mary Lovell-Smith