How to prepare your garden for the cooler autumnal weather

Don’t let the late spell of warm weather fool you; we’re well on our way to autumn as of the 22nd of this month! And as we all know, from September onwards, the temperature starts to cool down dramatically, the weather shifts, and we see far more of the already all too familiar rainy spells.

 

Preparing for autumn is slightly different from preparing for winter, as we aren’t quite at freezing temperatures just yet. If you aren’t ready to let go of your garden for the year, there’s still quite a lot of enjoyment you can squeeze out for the next month or so.

 

At Welch Fencing, we’re a family-run business that has been helping our customers have beautiful gardens since 1971 when we first started selling our garden fence panels, so we’ve got more than a few years of experience! With that in mind, here are a few of our top gardening tips for autumn and a beautiful space.

someone planting bulbs

Keep your lawn tidy

Seeing the occasional red, orange or brown leaf on your lawn can be a friendly reminder of the changing seasons; however, if they start to pile up, they can quickly become a problem. While it might not sound like that big of a deal since it’s all organic matter, fallen leaves can soon smother your lawn by stopping the flow of air and nutrients to the roots; if this happens, it can prevent new blades from emerging the following spring, making your lawn look patchy. So, to keep your lawn looking its best now and later, remember to get out in the yard with the rake as and when you need to!

Get pruning

Pruning plants is essential for maintaining plant health, controlling overgrowth, and preparing them for winter. By removing dead or diseased branches, you reduce the risk of infection from fungi and bacteria spreading to your other plants.

Autumn pruning also allows you to shape plants and improve air circulation, which promotes healthier growth in the next spring. It also helps your shrubs, plants, and fruit trees bloom and produce more! Using clean, sharp pruning shears, focus on removing dead, damaged, or excessive growth to keep your garden neat and thriving.

Plant your spring bulbs

Autumn is the ideal time to start thinking about how you want your garden to look next spring because you can actually start a lot of the preparation right now. Autumn is the last season when you can begin sowing your bulbs outside as the ground is still relatively mild and soft, and once your bulbs are safely tucked away under the ground, they’ll be safe from the winter frost. Flowers like crocuses, daffodils, and marigolds are great for planting in late September/October. However, if you are hard-pressed for time, you should be okay doing it in early November.

Keep an eye on your fence panels

At Welch Fencing, we pride ourselves on the quality of our products; we know that our garden fence panels are robust and sturdy and, with the proper care, will last for years and throughout every season. However, to keep your fence looking its best throughout autumn and to keep its structural integrity as intact as possible, there are a few things you can do. The first port of call is to make sure it’s sealed and protected for the onslaught of wet and winter weather that’s coming our way in the coming months.

Next is to trim any branches that are hanging a little too close to your fence boards. They might not be a threat now, but in a nasty storm, they could do some serious damage to your panels. Lastly, like your lawn, you don’t want heaps of leaves and other debris piling up on or around the base of your fences because it encourages dampness and rot, so when you’re clearing off the lawn, have a brief tidy up along your fence too, and you should be good to go!

With these top tips you’ll keep your garden looking beautiful and functioning all throughout autumn! If you’ve got any questions, feel free to contact our friendly staff by dropping us an email or calling us on 01772 336 476. We’re always happy to help!

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