Gardening guru tells people to gather one item from their gardens in September
As we transition into the autumn season, a gardening guru has offered some sage advice for those with a passion for plants.
Pollyanna Wilkinson, who shares her green-fingered wisdom on TikTok under the handle @pollywilkinsongarden, suggests that September is the perfect time to start planning for next year's blossoms. She emphasised the need to identify annuals - plants that complete their life cycle in just one year - that have gone to seed.
"Collect the ripe seed," she advises in her latest video, before sharing her top tips for storage. "Put them into an envelope and store them somewhere frost free and we'll sow them next year."
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The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) supports this guidance, adding: "Collect ripe seed on a dry day, as soon as the seedheads (e.g. capsules or pods) ripen. This is often indicated by a colour change from green to brown, black or red, but must be before they open and shed their contents."
The RHS also recommends laying out the picked seedheads (either individually or on stalks) to dry in a warm place - such as a greenhouse bench, a sunny windowsill or even an airing cupboard. "This enables seed to be more easily extracted from pods, cones or capsules," the experts clarify, adding that if stored correctly, the seeds should remain "viable for many years"
Green-thumbed Pollyanna is dishing out her top tips for gardeners looking to get ahead for next year's bloom, and she's adamant that now's the time to sow hardy annuals. She also suggests September as the perfect month to lift gladioli corms in preparation for spring replanting.
"Now is the time to lift up the corms and allow them to dry out before storing them somewhere frost free," she advises.
Pollyanna has more pearls of wisdom for this month, starting with a reminder to order Spring bulbs pronto. "Why order now? Because they sell out," she cautions.
"You don't need to plant them now - store them somewhere like the shed - and we'll get round to them in November or December."
She then moves on to lawn care, urging garden enthusiasts to "scarify" their lawns. For those not in the know, she clarifies: "Scarifying is essentially raking the lawn to get out thatch and moss and it's really going to improve the health of your lawn."
Wrapping up her advice, Pollyanna highlights another task that can be tackled in either September or October dividing perennials. She even provides a handy list of suitable plants in the video's caption, saying: "Suitable options include: Agapanthus, Anemone, Aster, Bergenia, Delphinium, Epimedium, Eryngium, Geranium, Helianthus, Lychnis, nepeta ornamental grasses, Salvia, Sedum, Verbena."
She explained: "We're dividing them because not only does it create more plants we can use elsewhere in the garden, but every two, three or four years we divide them to retain their vigour and ensure they keep flowering. Essentially all you have to do is dig them up, whack a spade through it to divide the clump, replant them, water them and that's it - free plants, healthier plants."
Her guidance was warmly welcomed by her online audience. One TikTok enthusiast commented: "Thanks for the info," while another expressed gratitude writing: "Thanks for the tips! " Another follower added their appreciation, saying: "Brilliant, thank you."