Innholdsfortegnelse for 25 October 2025 i Garden News

Last weekend my garden had its grand autumn tidy-up. There’s a case to be made for saying that right now – freshly chopped, weeded, edged and mulched – it looks better than it has done all year! A thoroughly rewarding couple of days, with the plot ready for winter, although there is clear confusion among some of my plants. I have flowers on a weigela and a ceanothus, neither of which should be doing anything until spring. It would seem the mild autumn has thrown them somewhat. But other spring bloomers can be started now and will hopefully behave themselves! We shine the spotlight on alliums, such a fantastic bulb (see page 12); we’ve put together a selection of our favourites for you to try. There are so many different…

We always think it’s flowers that brighten our gardens. But in autumn and winter, when flowers are less colourful, it’s autumn fruits and berries that come to the fore. Huge pyracantha clusters weigh down the branches, crab apples drop all over the lawn and there are so many fallen plums that they squelch underfoot. It’s been a wonderful year for them all. And it’s not just colour. A wide range of birds also enjoy the windfalls from the shrubs in our borders, along with voles and field mice. And cut sprays look good in vases indoors. While many berried shrubs and trees need no special attention, there’s some insider knowledge and old wives’ tales to examine. We’re told we need male and female holly plants to ensure berries. But are…

Lots to learn from my plot Sarah Curtis A beautiful cottage garden in Worcestershire, full to the brim with colourful classics and roses. Like many gardeners up and down the country, I’ve struggled with keeping the garden looking as I should wish this year. Certain plants have proved they just don’t suit their current conditions. As a gardener, this both excites and challenges me, and hopefully this autumn I can relocate them to new homes that better suit their needs. Although some plants are well past their best, I’m still enjoying several of my roses, including ‘Just Joey’, ‘Rachel’ and ‘Super Trouper’, which provides the most stunning fiery-orange pop of colour. The striking rudbeckias, which are nestled among echinaceas, salvias and penstemons, are providing a glorious display. This was my…

It’s difficult to replicate the vibrant colours of summer. However, you can still have brightness and interest now by planting up a few pots. Plants need to be winter hardy, so ones like evergreen shrubs, perennials and grasses are ideal. Most won’t be in flower, but there’s their foliage. For flowers, several perennials will bloom for a while longer, and other plants, such as winter-flowering heathers, violas and pansies, will also add a welcome splash of colour. For me, the secret of planting a container at this time of year is to plant what looks good now to give instant impact. Remember, the plants you use now won’t grow much over the coming months, so you’ll need to plant close together. You can also cheat! I often buy plants that…

The summer may have been a challenging season, but the fruit harvest has been phenomenal. Record amounts of pears are being harvested, but we must be quick as they ripen all at once! I’m turning them into cakes and pastries and bottling the rest in Kilner jars. This pear tart is delicious served warm or cold, on its own or with single cream as a special treat. Ingredients Serves 8 FOR THE PASTRY: 225g plain flour 25g caster sugar 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 100g butter 1 egg, yolk only but reserve the white Zest of 1 lemon FOR THE FILLING: 75g butter 50g caster sugar Zest of 1 lemon 1 egg 50g ground almonds 5 ripe, medium-size pears 3 tablespoons apricot jam 2 tbsp lemon juice Method • Preheat the…

If you want the best sweet peas next summer, with the earliest blooms, the strongest stems and the best flowers, sow seeds in the next month. Sowing in autumn lets the seedlings grow slowly over winter, establishing large root systems, which means they grow more strongly when planted out in spring. Sweet pea seeds don’t need high temperatures to germinate and they’ll grow without extra heat in a cold greenhouse or on the windowsill. Once the seedlings show they must be kept in bright light and as cool as possible. A cold greenhouse or cold frame is ideal. But take care they don’t dry out and protect them against slugs and mice, which like to eat the seedlings. There’s no need to ‘chit’ (scrape or chip) the seeds to break…

Once fruit bushes have shed their leaves, you can set about taking hardwood cuttings of stems from the current year’s growth. These cuttings are extremely simple and almost foolproof – they’re pretty much guaranteed to root, although it can take a while, but it means you can forget about them. Come back to them later next year from about spring, and you will hopefully have some well-rooted plants. Currant, mulberry or gooseberry cuttings, for example, can be planted straight into the ground in a little dedicated spot on your plot, or you can start them in pots to plant out. Transplant, plant out or repot your cuttings when they’ve made good progress, have firmly rooted and grown good foliage later into next year. If you’ve planted your cuttings in the…

WILKINSON SWORD HORI HORI TROWEL £14.99 • Blending the functions of a trowel and a knife, this can be used to tackle a multitude of gardening tasks from planting in stony soil to cutting roots. It has a rust-resistant stainless steel blade and a contoured wooden handle for comfortable use. For added safety, there is also a protective pouch with a secure hook and eye closure. From: wilkinsonsword-tools.co.uk ROUGHNECK GORILLA DIGGING HEAD WITH SERRATED BLADE £14.99 • This compact shovel is perfect for digging and shovelling in confined spaces. The heavy-gauge carbon steel blade, steel-reinforced power ring socket and sharp serrated edge can slice through roots and open bags. From: screwfix.com ANDERMATT BIOFLEECE 18 FROM £14.05 • Made from corn extract, this biodegradable heavy-duty frost fleece is easy to cut…

The latest from Carol's beautiful cottage garden... plus her diary for the week! Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness... What a rich season autumn is, with flamboyant tree displays of flaming leaves, and fruits and berries draping branches with a rich harvest. In beds and borders, perennial drama queens – cannas, salvias and dahlias – attempt to outdo each other. There is no beginning and no culmination in gardening, yet for me autumn has a celebratory feel. It is a high point. Berries follow flowers, and in many cases outshine them. One clear example is euonymus, or spindle. You wouldn’t notice the flowers, but somebody (from flies to gnats to hoverflies to bees) does, since they are followed by spectacular orange berries, revealed when their attractive, fleshy pink covering bursts…

Hedges are a great way to introduce privacy, security and structure to your property. A planted boundary can be a natural barrier to wind and noise, while improving air quality by absorbing pollutants and sequestering carbon, but a native hedge also provides a wealth of benefits to wildlife. Planting a mixed native hedge in your garden will produce a diverse range of flowers, fruits, nuts and nesting sites for birds and pollinators. It also provides shelter for mammals such as mice and hedgehogs, who use hedges as corridors to move between gardens, and creates habitat for butterflies and moths to lay their eggs. A native hedge can include a wide variety of species, from fruiting crab apple (Malus sylvestris), spindleberry (Euonymus europaeus), blackthorn (Prunus spinosa), hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica)…

Helping you get your best-ever fruit and veg Some gardeners have already begun to sow their broad beans for overwintering, but I prefer to hold back a little before getting seeds into the ground. Sowing too early can often lead to problems, particularly if you’re starting them in modules for planting out later. Broad beans are hardy plants, but when given too much of a head start they can grow away too quickly, becoming tall, leggy and ultimately weaker than you want them to be going into the colder months. I’ve found that by waiting until late October, or even into November, before sowing them in modules in an unheated greenhouse, the result is much stronger and produces more compact plants. These grow more slowly in the cooler conditions and,…

Professor Buczacki is a horticultural expert, writer and former chair of Gardeners' Question Time Got a problem? Our Problem Solver can help! See our contact details on page 3 #GNASKTHEEXPERTS How can I prevent tomato blight? Jan Kerry, Penrith, Cumbria Stefan says: I think you’ve been unlucky, because many parts of the country have been too dry for tomato blight this year, although I know the Lake District, where you are, has had a fair amount of rain. You’re especially worried, however, because you’ve now composted the remains of your heritage tomato crop and have been told this was the wrong thing to do and you fear you’ve ruined the compost heap and will have even worse problems next year. You grow your tomatoes in a raised bed and ask…

A whiff of wisdom! I read with interest in a recent issue of your Problem Solver section, the answer to a request for advice to deter badgers as they can cause serious damage in gardens. My friends have found a clever deterrent: sprinkling urine around the perimeter and problem areas like ponds and veg beds. It has worked brilliantly for them. I’ve read that male urine deters other pests, too! I’ve enjoyed your magazine for years – old issues line the pots of my quite rare greenhouse succulents and I reread every copy before composting the scraps. Denise McFarland, by email Pondside surprise I wanted to share the thrill I felt coming across some hardy cyclamen nestling next to my pond. It’s difficult to describe the pleasure their awakening brings;…