It’s time to whip the garden into shape for some outdoor entertaining with these tips for October:

Plant now

• Plant summer-flowering bulbs like gladiolus, dahlia and amaryllis. Most spring-flowering bulbs will have finished flowering. Indigenous varieties like ixia, sparaxis and freesia can be left in the ground, while anemone and ranunculus should be discarded.

Feed now

• Start feeding your hydrangeas for optimal colour. For blue blooms, feed with a solution of aluminium sulphate (25g dissolved in 5 litres of water). For pink blooms, dust the soil around the base of the plant lightly with agricultural lime.
• Feed fuchsias every two weeks with 3:1:5 to aid flower development.
• Feed all indoor and outdoor container plants with liquid fertiliser every two weeks.
• Feed, water and mow your lawn regularly. Lawns can be fed with a handful of 3:2:1 per square metre. Water well afterwards.

Sow

• Sow vegetables like carrots, beetroot, cucumbers, lettuce, radishes, tomatoes, eggplant and parsnips.

Words and image: Fairlady magazine