Alan Titchmarsh says start six crucial jobs today to prepare gardens for winter

Autumn has well and truly arrived here in the UK. Temperatures are dropping, and with it comes a number of crucial jobs for Britain’s gardeners to sink their teeth into.

Trees are shedding their leaves, which, will painting a beautiful autumnal picture up and down the country, creates a fair amount of work for green-fingered Brits.

Fortunately, one of the nation’s most celebrated gardeners – Alan Titchmarsh – has a number of handy jobs for people to get cracking on from today (Sunday, November 1) to prepare their garden for winter. He says November “is a really important month” in his garden because this is when he starts the crucial work of getting it ready for when the cold really bites.

Taking to his YouTube channel, which has 196,000 subscribers, he listed the six essential jobs he tries to get done this month.

1) Fallen leaves

Alan’s first piece of advice is an important one – taking care of fallen leaves. Most garden owners will have noticed their gardens are now covered in leaves.

As the former Gardeners’ World presenter says: “The sooner you clear them up, the better it is for your garden.” Alan recommends waiting until all the leaves have fallen before raking them off.

It’s important to clear away the leaves because they deny the grass of crucial light and air, which can trigger fungus diseases. Alan advises using a plastic tooth rake for small areas, but people should switch to a leaf blower for larger areas because they are “more efficient”.

He said: “And once you’ve gathered all your leaves, don’t burn them. Either dispose of them responsibly or even better, mix them into your compost heat where they’ll rot down.”

2) Protecting wildlife

November is also a crucial month for wildlife with many species looking for a safe place to hibernate. Food is also becoming more scarce with the cold weather beginning to bite.

With this in mind, garden-owners can take steps to encourage wildlife into their gardens.

Alan said: “If you’re raking up moss, leaves, or twigs in the garden, leave a few piles of it around so hedgehogs, frogs and insects have a safe place to hibernate.

“If you’re cutting back perennials in your borders, think about which plants have seed heads that the birds will enjoy. Hydrangea, stachys or lamb’s ears, and the sea holly, all have seed heads that are a great source of food.”

Alan added that people can make a homemade bird bath out of a spare flower pot and a saucer to make your garden more hospitable to birds.

3) Protect tender plants

This month is an important time to protect any tender plants you might have in your garden. According to Alan, a tender plant is one which can’t stand any degree of frost – something which is increasingly common as the year rumbles on.

If you leave one of these plants out in the garden, they will die when temperatures get frosty.

Alan said: “In our YouTube garden, we have bird of paradise flowers growing in pots outdoors to make sure they come through the winter.

“They’ll need to be moved in and kept free of frost. Plants like citrus fruits, oranges, and lemons also need to be brought inside before the weather gets too cold. Put them in your greenhouse or a brightly lit room to make sure they survive the winter.”

4) Seed sowing

Gardening presenter Alan advises people to start sowing their seeds in the early part of November. He says that sweet pea seeds like peas and beans are “greedy, thirsty plants”.

Alan laid out his strategy for sowing the seeds, recommending gardeners to sow them in “multi-purpose peat-free seed compost”.

He said: “Tip the seeds into the hand. And I’m putting two in each cell. And then when they’ve gone in, just push them down about an inch with a pen or a pencil.

“Water them in. and stand them in a cool but frostfree place and they’ll come up. You’ve then got to keep them going through to next spring. It is a way of stealing a March and getting earlier flowers by sewing your sweet peas in autumn.”

5) Lawn care

Lawn care is something many will be thinking about at this time of year, especially after a punishing and hot summer.

This links back to Alan’s first piece of advice, as removing the fallen leaves is a great way to look after your lawn. The veteran presenter also recommended raising the height of cut on your lawnmower

He said: “Raising the height of cut on the mower so there’s more grass blade down there to get the plants and grass are plants through the winter. You can rake it with a wire tooth rake. if you’ve got a lot of moss and pull that right out.

“And if it’s badly drained, spike it with a fork. wiggle it around a bit to let the soil drain more readily. Other than that, there’s not too much you need to do.”

6) Greenhouse maintenance

Lastly, for those who own a greenhouse, November is a great time to give it a good spring clean. While the building does not need much by way of maintenance over the summer, it’s a different story as autumn rolls around.

It’s a good idea to make sure it functions as well as possible during the cold winter months. Alan says some good old fashioned elbow grease will help with this task.

He said: “On a dry day, get yourself a bucket of soapy water and a long-handled broom and work your way up and down all the panels inside and out, getting rid of all the green.

“Then wash it all off with clean water once you’re done. Then you’re all set for seed sewing, taking cutings, and giving plants a good home in the new year. So make the most of November. Prepare your garden to be kind to wildlife and your plants.”

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