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Late summer is turning to autumn and its time to cut down the meadow at Longmeadow. The meadow is in its second year and so Monty is cutting it a little later than usual (established meadows are cut from June to late August) to allow the perennials to really get established. You can cut meadows with shears, a scythe or a mower. If you use a mower make sure it is fit for purpose as many won’t be up to the job, you can also hire suitable machines which will make light work of larger spaces.Ìý

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Knoll Gardens
Stapehill Road
Hampreston
Wimborne
BH21 7ND
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Tel: 01202 873931
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With naturalistic planting and one of the largest collections of grass in the UK, Knoll Gardens is the place to see grasses and how to use them in a garden. Carol Klein meets owner and ornamental grass expert, Neil Lucas to talk about the wide variety of plants available to gardens including:Ìý

• Molinia caerulea subsp. caerulea 'Poul Petersen' (Purple moor grass)
• Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola' (Golden hakonechloa),Ìý
• Miscanthus sinensis ‘Roland’ (Eulalia),Ìý
• Miscanthus sinensis ‘Malepartus’,Ìý
• Miscanthus ‘Ferner Osten’,Ìý
• Panicum virgatum ‘Red Cloud’,Ìý
• Pennisetum ‘Fairy Tails’ (Fountain grass),Ìý
• Pennisetum macrourum 'Short Stuff' (African feather grass).

Ìý (www.knollgardens.co.uk)

Joe Swift meets John Holland and his bee colonies, on his allotment in Bristol. By keeping bees John believes his crops, and those of his neighbours, are better pollinated and therefore more fruitful. Honey bees are one type of pollinator and there are many more which help to fertilise fruiting plants like apples, pears, squashes and beans. However, by keeping honey bees you also get an extra crop of honey at harvest time! Follow the link below to find out more about keeping bees on allotments.Ìý

(www.bbka.org.uk)

Next year’s flowers on camellias, rhododendrons and azaleas are already formed as buds. But unless these have a good soak with rainwater now in autumn, there is a risk they may drop off before they open. So water them now and every week for the next 3-4 weeks and that will ensure you get the best possible display next spring.

(www.rhs.org.uk)

Scarifying is a way to de-thatch your lawn. Use a wire rake and give it a vigorous scratch. This will take up any dead material and moss which can be put on the compost heap. It will also expose the roots of the grass to might and air. There will be some response this autumn but the main benefit will be seen when it starts to regrow next spring.

(www.rhs.org.uk)

If you cut your mint back a month or so ago, you should have lots of strong, fresh growth. In late summer or early autumn, dig up a section a section of your outdoor mint plant and pot it up into rich, free-draining compost. Water it well and put it on a bright windowsill or in a greenhouse, this should give you plenty of mint for the kitchen over the winter when the outdoor plant has died back.

(www.gardenorganic.org.uk)