Autumn leaves and windy weather may make you want to cuddle up inside, but’s time to get down and dirty and prep your garden for winter.
Just because the busy summer period is behind you, it doesn’t mean that there’s nothing to do in the garden.
Autumn is a great time to tidy up, start a side project and get your garden ready for winter. This season brings beautiful ambers and reds from fallen leaves, but it can also harbour pests and problems in your garden, such as powdery mildew.
We’ve taken a look at The Country Women’s Association of Victoria’s book ‘Thrifty Gardening’ for insight into how to tackle any autumn garden issues, and all the jobs to complete before the cold of winter sets in.
If you’re looking for planting tips, head to our what to plant in autumn page for adding new bulbs and seeds to the garden.
Better yet, you can distinguish it by month:
Do a big tidy up
Get rid of weeds
Long days and summer rains are the perfect conditions for weed growth, so there’s probably more in your garden that you’d like. Work your way around the beds pulling them out, roots and all. Use a weed puller to remove any that are well rooted. On the lawn, use a spray on weed killer and fertiliser. It will not only kill the weeds but also give your garden a boost before winter.
Pull up any dead or spent plants
Plants that have run their course should be removed so your new sowing and small saplings can have more space. ‘Thrifty Gardening’ recommends to pull up spent tomato plants, even if they still have a couple of unripe ones on there. You can then “hang them upside down in a dry and airy place such as a shed to try and ripen any tomatoes still on the plants.”
Strawberries can also be tended to, once they have finished fruiting. “Cut off the strawberry plant at the end of each runner. Dig up your old plants, fertilise and form the area into mounds, plant the new runners and mulch the area.”
Rake up dead leaves and natural debris
The Country Women’s Association of Victoria reminds us that raking up dead leaves is just as important as planting new seeds. This is because any natural debris left in garden beds or vegie patch can mould or create pest problems.
They recommend to not put the dead leaves on the bonfire, and instead add them to the compost heap to turn into a hearty fertiliser for your plants.
Start new projects
Save vegetable seeds
Vegetable seeds can be saved for a myriad of reasons, but the best one is to replant your vegie patch for the next harvest! The following seeds can be dried and replanted before summer:
- Pumpkin
- Broad bean
- Pea
- Tomato
These self-seeding plants can also be left in the garden bed or carefully moved to the desired spot for a new plant to grow:
- Silver beet
- Broccoli
- Leeks
- Parsley
- Lettuce
- Cauliflower
Dry and use your garden herbs in different ways
Your garden herbs tend to go to seed around this time, meaning you won’t have fresh garnishes and aromatics to flavour your winter dishes. Instead, you can dry your herbs to keep that homegrown tastiness!
The Country Women’s Association of Victoria recommends that drying bay leaves is quite simple, and can last the whole year. The best way to do it is by tying ‘bunches of leaves together and hang in an airy place to dry.’ Bay leaves can also deter weevils and moths from your kitchen pantry!
Start a compost heap
With all those weeds and tree trimmings lying around, now is the perfect time to start a compost heap. You don’t need to have a special compost bin or contained area but this helps keep things tidy. Amongst your garden clippings, throw in all your kitchen waste.
A healthy compost heap needs a wide variety of ingredients. Also include some soil and mature compost which will add beneficial organisms to the heap and help get things started. Water occasionally and use a garden fork to turn it regularly to allow oxygen to aerate the heap.
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
