Oh, I don’t want the summer to end! We haven’t had enough of it; but do we ever?

Even before we realise, one season ends and leads to another and this month we officially entered autumn, which usually reminds me of a saying: “Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower” (by Albert Camus). That’s very well said, considering that mother nature spreads around us a glow of fiery colours before winter sets in.

Though most gardeners can think of autumn as a time to take a break, sit back and relax with the thought of a season’s work well done, it actually could be a lot of work with branches becoming heavy with fruits and leaves turning to gold and falling all over the lawn. It can also be the time when you get busy completing plenty of chores before winter settles in. These include jobs such as lawn care, cutting and trimming flowers or shrubs, and the pruning and lopping of large shrubs and trees.

With all the summer work, soil in your garden usually gets overworked and autumn is the perfect time to replenish it. Most plants, especially food producing ones need a good, fertile soil, and the best way to achieve this is by digging some well rotted manure into the ground.

The relatively cooler weather of autumn makes it the ideal time to plant trees, shrubs, bulbs and perennials.

This helps roots to grow enough to establish the plants before winter and give them a blooming start in spring. However, you need to be careful since certain plant varieties should not be planted because they tend to root slowly and may not survive.

One of the positives of this season is you can have a splash of colours in your garden. Apart from the summer blooms, some late flowering perennials such as Michaelmas daisies and crocosmias can be great additions for the garden in autumn. This is also a good time to plant new fruit trees – they also contribute to the richness of the autumn colour canvas.

The fallen leaves in the lawn or garden can be added to the compost pile, or they can also be shredded with a lawnmower, raked up, and used as mulch over flower beds.

The diseased foliage from perennials and bushes should be cleaned up, but not used in the compost pile as it may not get hot enough to kill the pathogens.

Your garden tools that won’t get used over the next few months of autumn and winter, can be cleaned and stored. Make the best use of your shed in the garden if you have one!

Though caring for your garden is a year-round and ongoing process, timing is very important for certain jobs. For example, pruning too early in autumn can result in soft new growth that will be too weak to withstand the winter cold, while pruning too late can lead to frost damage.