What to do NOW: August 30 - September 5

Trimming of all evergreen hedges - cypress, thuya, holly and laurel - can be carried out about now. As growth is nearly over for the year, there will be very little new growth and the hedges will stay neat until about May.  Even this late in the growing year, young trees can benefit from watering if they arppear to be struggling - they can still make some growth in the remaining couple of months. Preparations for autumn and winter planting can be made now — it is a good time to apply Roundup to kill existing grass and weeds.

More on Trees, Shrubs and Roses

 Trees | Shrubs | Hedges | Mixed borders

Spring bulbs are appearing in the shops and it is a good time to make an assessment as to new locations for bulbs. Tidy up messy perennial flowers, but be sure to leave good stems and seedheads, such as agapanthus, fennel, lysimachia, dierama, phlomis and monarda, for autumn and winter display. Bedding and container annuals will last longer if given some liquid feeding now — they still have two months in them but will fade long before that without feeding and regular watering.

More on Flowers

 Perennial flowers | Flower beds | Rockery | Containers

If there are some warm days, it keeps soil temperatures high and good growth of grass results. Little need be done except to keep the grass mown. Autumn lawn fertilizer could be applied if the grass is a bit sluggish through lack of nutrients. Moss control using sulphate of iron could be carried out where there is a problem.

More on Lawns

 Lawns

The vegetable garden will have gone past its summer peak. Sweet corn will be coming in, also parsnips, potatoes and swede turnips. Get rid of all old crops when they are finished and make sure not to let weeds get away and go to seed. When lifting potatoes, make sure to get out all small potatoes because these will become 'ground-keepers' which get in the way of other vegetables next year, and can carry blight and blackleg disease.

More on Fruit, Vegetables and Herbs

 Fruit growing | Vegetables | Herbs

Keep picking greenhouse tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers as soon as they are ready, otherwise cropping tails off quickly. Stop feeding most greenhouse plants now because they will have enough in the pot to keep them going and they are better going into winter a little 'harder'. Stop feeding house plants except those that flower in winter. Take cuttings of evergreen shrubs and trees and insert them in pots of two parts peat/one part sand in the greenhouse, covering them in white polythene. Pot up some freesia corms when available for wonderful scent in spring.

More on Greenhouse and House Plants

 Greenhouse growing