Innehållsförteckning för October 2023 från BBC Gardeners' World

Join us… for our special festive event at Le Manoir on 12 December – spaces are limited, so turn to p87 to book now Bring… the Christmas season to life with our latest GW Guide, Creative Christmas, full of festive projects and nature-inspired crafts. Buy now in stores or online at Mags Direct: bit.ly/GWCreative Christmas23 Listen… to season 2 of our podcast on sustainable gardening. Arit Anderson talks to a range of experts, exploring the small steps we can all take in our own plots to help protect our planet. Catch up at GardenersWorld.com/podcast Subscribe now… and get 6 issues for £24.50 plus Monty Don’s new hardback, The Gardening Book, worth £28. See p30 Keep up to date with us at FACEBOOK @GWmagazine INSTAGRAM @gardenersworldmag TWITTER @GWmag PINTEREST @GWmag Looking…

Collector’s item Knightshayes, near Tiverton, is home to one of the National Trust’s biggest plant collections. Emerging from the Devon countryside, it’s made up of a series of areas, varying from formal topiary gardens to richly planted woodland glades. There’s still plenty to see at this time of year, especially in the walled kitchen garden, where vibrant dahlias offer a last colourful hurrah. But this beautifully maintained garden is not just for show – look out in October for pumpkins and squashes ripening in the low autumn sun. ENTRY OFFER House and garden: 2 for 1 £14. Single reduced to £7. Open all year – for full details visit nationaltrust.org.uk/knightshayes. Offer not valid on bank holidays. Acers high From lime greens and charcoal blacks to burning vermilion, the acer grove at…

“A hedge, for all its fresh-cut crispness, retains the anarchy of growth that is the pulse of even the most rigidly tamed garden” I love all hedges. At their best they create magnificent living sculpture in gardens, while at their worst even the scruffiest hedge provides ideal nesting and cover for birds, insects and small mammals. Hedges baffle the wind far better than any fence or wall, filtering and sluicing it through their mesh of branches, and create microclimates that can transform the range of plants a garden can contain. Their shade is usually benign and protective and, not least, they provide the privacy that every garden must have if it’s to be fully enjoyed. But the thing I like most about hedges is the spaces they create. It is…

As autumn arrives, a wonderful way to give an instant boost to your garden, courtyard or balcony is with flamboyantly planted containers. Their concentrated burst of colour makes a great focal point on a patio, by a front door or in a fading border. Positioned singly, in pairs or in clusters, they’re the ultimate transportable garden. Easy to create and not too costly, they can be completed in under 30 minutes. And what’s more, the hardy plants that you use can later be integrated into your borders. Annuals can be composted. So, what are you waiting for? Get creative and follow my easy container recipes for some sure-fire injections of autumn drama into your garden. Planted now, they’ll retain their vibrant hues for months on end, keeping your garden truly…

“When we grow plants from all over the world, sudden drops in temperature can take them – and us – by surprise” The nationwide cold snap in December 2022 reminded us that a lot of plants we’d come to regard as hardy were, in reality, not quite as tough as we thought. For a good decade and more we’d brought the likes of penstemons and shrubby salvias through winter out in the garden without a problem, but many gardeners lost the lot last winter. Global warming isn’t a figment of our imagination, but it’s a mistake to forget that thing called ‘weather’ – even with overall rising temperatures, there’ll always be cold snaps that catch us out and remind us that when we grow plants from all over the world,…

Many gardeners extend their season of colour by growing late-flowering Verbena bonariensis, rudbeckias, Michaelmas daisies and sedums. This extra boost of nectar benefits pollinators, many of which may still be on the wing after a late start in spring. If conditions are mild, deadhead spent flowers to keep them producing more for as long as possible; if conditions are dry, then keep the plants well watered so they continue producing nectar. Unpredictable weather conditions are playing havoc with the lifecycles of bees and butterflies, so a good nectar drink now will make all the difference to those entering hibernation or flying south for winter. You may spot… Merveille du Jour moth, Griposia aprilina The French for ‘marvel of the day’, it’s easy to see why the Merveille du Jour is…

With a bit of luck, you might still have the last of the homegrown tomatoes coming off the vine this month. My daughter Alba is just coming up to two, and is taking her job as Chief Tomato Picker very seriously, carefully selecting just the red ones and placing each tomato on the patio table, before asking to be lifted up to pick the next one – a slow but very enjoyable way to harvest. I have to admit that my own squash plants weren’t very happy in pots this year, but my mum luckily had a bumper crop in her veg patch. They’re perfect for autumn casseroles, grated into rosti and muffins, roasted with spices and served alongside lemony pearl barley. Here, I share a favourite baked gnocchi and…

ACROSS 1 Cut down the ferny shoots of this plot delicacy to soil level once they’ve turned yellow (9) 7 An unwanted wild plant (4) 8 The fir genus (5) 9 Black __ is a form of frost damage on strawberries (3) 10 ‘__ Harkness’ is a classic red hybrid tea rose (3) 11 Blossom __ rot is a problem for fruits like 13 across (3) 12 Spanish dagger is a name for __ gloriosa (5) 13 The green, red or yellow fruits of Capsicum annuum (7) 15 Vinca minor, or __ periwinkle (6) 17 Tool that helps your lawn to breathe (7) 20 Chalk, sand and clay are different types of this (4) 22 Latin name indicating multi-coloured foliage (9) 23 __ up fallen leaves to rot down into leafmould…

Gardens of the Year 2023 ✔ Meet our eight worthy winners and cast your vote in the People’s Choice award ✔ Get inspiration and top tips on how to create the garden of your dreams ✔ Read what Alan and our other expert judges think makes a winning garden Give your soil some TLC and crack home composting – ADAM shows you how MONTY shares his house plant wisdom, for cacti, big leaves and much more Tidy bamboo and keep it in check with FRANCES’ expert advice Boost borders now for the best display next year – follow ALAN’s easy guide NICK shows how to take root cuttings to create lots of new plants Refresh your AUTUMN POTS and plan ahead for a spring display PLUS… Winter greenhouse wonders ◼ Force bulbs for Christmas ◼ Savour homegrown…

For more offers and details on how to order, see opposite page More great spring bulb offers, with no extra postage • Narcissus Citrus Sorbet A random mix, from doubles to pretty bicolour varieties. H x S 40cm x 25cm F Mar-Apr 25 bulbs £15.99 £14.99 SAVE £1 (63251) 50 bulbs £31.98 £19.99 SAVE £11.99 (KB5948) • Tulip Everlasting Mixed Bold colours and strong stems make this mix of tulips good for cutting. H x S 40cm x 15cm F Apr-May 16 bulbs £11.99 (45564) 32 bulbs £23.98 £17.99 SAVE £5.99 (KB5934) • English bluebells A hardy, native bulb, ideal for naturalising in woodlands and shady areas. H x S 25cm x 8cm F Apr-May 30 bulbs £13.99 (KF4696) 60 bulbs £27.98 £19.99 SAVE £7.99 (KB5936) • Allium Big Impact Mixed Assorted sizes and colours that…

Drying flowers has gone through phases of popularity (and unpopularity) but in recent years it seems to be something people are trying more and more. The driving force behind this is probably financial. Times are hard for us all, and spending money on fresh flowers can seem like a stretch too far. Growing cut flowers is great in the spring and summer, but virtually impossible in the winter, so preserving summer blooms to brighten up the house seems like a logical step. The other big factor driving the dried flower revival is sustainability. The vast majority of bought cut flowers are imported from other countries, especially in winter. Drying your own flowers – even in some cases without the need for your own garden, with foraged flowers such as the…

As the dark days of winter approach, it’s exciting to look forward to colourful spring bulbs and browse catalogues and websites for ideas of what to grow. Tulips are among the biggest and brightest of spring flowers and now is the time to plant them. They look great in borders and containers, filling our gardens with colour, but they can have a downside – many can fail to produce the same quality of display the following year. This is because most highly bred tulip varieties need specific conditions to re-flower. They must be dug up and then stored in a dry, temperature-controlled environment to ensure a repeat performance as good as the first. But most of us can’t do that, and it can be expensive and wasteful to throw bulbs…

◼ Tulipa ‘Peppermintstick’ Two-tone petals. Blooms reliably year on year. Height x Spread 30cm x 10cm Flowers Apr 20 bulbs £8.90 £7.57 ◼ T. tarda Star-shaped flowers with golden, white-tipped petals. H x S 15cm x 15cm F Apr-May 15 bulbs £3.90 £3.32 ◼ T. orphanidea Lizzy Pointed bright-red petals with black basal blotch. H x S 15cm x 10cm F Apr-May 10 bulbs £5.90 £5.02 ◼ T. saxatilis ‘Lilac Wonder’ Pale lilac petals with yellow central markings. H x S 25cm x 15cm F Apr-May 20 bulbs £4.80 £4.08 ◼ T. praestans ‘Fusilier’ Radiant red and perfect for pots. H x S 30cm x 20cm F Mar-Apr 10 bulbs £4.90 £4.17 ◼ T. ‘White Emperor’ White with a pale golden base. Also known as ‘Purissima’. H x S 45cm…

◼ Water minimally, avoiding total dryness at the roots, but remembering that soggy compost can encourage rotting of the roots and the base of the stem. ◼ Ensure good air circulation around the plants. ◼ Watch out for pests and take steps to reduce them as soon as you see them. ◼ Remove any faded leaves regularly and carefully prune out dying stems. ◼ Avoid feeding the plants in winter – they can’t make use of the nutrients. ◼ Keep an eye on the maximum and minimum thermometer, checking that temperatures are high enough at night to ward off any frost.…

Join the BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine team for a day of festive luxury and fun on Thursday 14 December 2023 at the highly acclaimed Le Manoir hotel. Discover how to create your own Christmas table centrepiece and watch an expert cookery demo, then enjoy a champagne reception and two-Michelin-star lunch. Set in the heart of rural Oxfordshire, Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons is inspired by the plants that surround it. Pioneers of a sustainable approach, Raymond Blanc and his team are celebrated for bringing the outside in – the gardens and orchards inform not only the menus but every element of the Le Manoir experience. During this special day you will learn the art of creating a stunning table display that will leave your festive-season guests in awe. There will also…

DARLAC Supplying and creating gardening cutting tools, hand tools and watering equipment to suit every gardener’s needs. darlac.com, online only CODE: GWDAR10 DT BROWN One of the leading UK seed suppliers, offering great quality and value on everything for your garden. dtbrownseeds.co.uk, 03330 030869 CODE: GWDTB10 FARMER GRACY Offers top-quality bulbs and bare-root perennials, and ensures products are processed and packed in a sustainable way. farmergracy.co.uk, online only CODE: GW23RDR GARDENING DIRECT Sells plants that are easy to grow and maintain, to help ensure that ‘gardening is for everyone’. gardeningdirect.co.uk, 03333 702702 CODE: EGDGW10R HARKNESS ROSES Offering some of the finest award-winning British roses, celebrated for their fragrance and repeat flowering, for over 140 years. roses.co.uk, 0844 502 0014 CODE: HGW10R HAYLOFT Nursery offering a substantial and ever-changing range of unique…

Only a limited range of plants will successfully root via leaf-vein cuttings. Most of them are tender species of tropical or sub-tropical origin, including Begonia masoniana, Begonia rex, streptocarpus, sinningia and smithiantha.…

What do you think is the rarest thing in your garden? A special snowdrop? A mature pocket-handkerchief tree? Neither, I reckon. It’s clear to me that the rarest thing in any garden is… silence. It appears to be the one commodity that money can’t buy. A stately home close to us came up for sale a few years ago. A wealthy billionaire arrived in his helicopter to take a look. He landed it on the lawn beside the impressive Palladian-fronted property – all pillars and pilasters, dating from the 18th century, and surrounded by several hundred acres of farmland and woodland. He switched off his helicopter engines, disembarked the craft and listened. He could hear the not-too-distant hum of the M3. He boarded his helicopter and took off, never to…

“You don’t waste October sunshine”Katherine Arden STAR OF THE MONTH Hydrangea aspera Hot Chocolate I have a nifty little ear worm for you: a slightly annoying thing happens whenever I come across a particularly fine hydrangea like this one. Into my head pops the tune Volare – you know, the one that goes “Nel blu dipinto di blu”. My Italian is very rough so I have no idea what it means but I can’t help singing “hydrangea” in my head to that tune. With this particular variety (Hot Chocolate) it would be more appropriate if I sang “you sexy thing (sexy thing you)” but probably best if I stick with “hydrangea, oh-oh, aspera oh-oh-oh-oh”. Spectacular and reliable plant for sun or light shade. As with all hydrangeas it must be…

UK faces tree shortage dilemma The Government is funding new tree-seed nurseries to boost future tree supplies, as growers warn that gardeners face years of shortages due to soaring demand. Tree retailers across Britain have told GW they expect supplies to be low again in the coming year, following acute shortages last season, when tree planting shot up by 40 per cent, with the Government piling on the pressure to increase planting to 30,000 hectares of new woodland each year by 2025. Last year, oak trees were particularly hard to find as gardeners and community groups also planted three million for the Queen’s Green Canopy, marking the Platinum Jubilee. Mike Glover, managing director of Barcham Trees, tells us he has already sold out of more popular garden trees such as…

◼ Holly (Ilex aquifolium) makes an excellent hedge, but is rather slow growing, especially at first. Don’t plant it along borders though, as the fallen leaves are impossibly hostile if you’re weeding or planting nearby. ◼ Thuja plicata and Lawson’s cypress (Chamaecyparis lawsoniana) also make great evergreen hedges. They grow quickly and can be clipped into a barrier. ◼ Yew isn’t just for large gardens and grows faster than you might expect, at 60-90cm a year. It regenerates well after hard pruning and needs only one trim annually. But if kept to below 1m, it rarely retains a tight shape – for that, choose box (Buxus sempervirens). ◼ I love both hornbeam (Carpinus betulus) and beech (Fagus sylvatica), but would never plant both in the same garden. They do the same…

Craspedia globosa Billy buttons should grow well from direct sowing in spring. Pick them with as long a stem as possible on a dry day when they’re in peak colour. Suspend them upside-down in bunches in a dark, well-ventilated and dry room for one to two weeks. Height x Spread 90cm x 50cm Flowers May-Sep Ammi majus A beautiful annual in the carrot family; sow seeds from March until May. They can be direct sown or sown into trays or modules. Plant out from late May and expect flowers by August. To dry them, hang upside-down in a well-ventilated, dry room, out of direct sunlight, for around three weeks. H x S 1.5m x 50cm F Jun-Sep Gomphrena globosa These can be a little bit delicate once they are dried…

When planting tulips for a long-lasting display, choose a location where the soil drains well. Avoid damp corners with little air movement. They like an open site and full sun. The only exception is the late-flowering Tulipa sprengeri, which prefers growing in partial shade. Plant a selection of species to extend the flowering time, from late March to the end of May. Then, unless you garden on heavy clay, leave the bulbs in the ground after flowering, and they should reflower the following spring. Tulips grow a whole bulb every year, so never cut back the leaves until they have completely died down, as they are needed to build up the new bulb. If your garden has damp or heavy soil, try making a raised bed to improve drainage or…

“Since our last visit to Duloe Manor we have chalked up over 80 HPB holidays and now here we are, 20 years later, spending a different kind of family time, in lovely gardens, with a new addition to the clan.”Les and Margaret Hill Bondholders holidaying at HPB’s Duloe Manor in Cornwall Although Duloe Manor has exceptional gardens, it is by no means unique in the Holiday Property Bond portfolio. HPB’s homes are in beautiful locations, and we’ve always been at pains to ensure that the gardens and landscaping surrounding the accommodation should complement, and enhance, what’s already there, while remaining totally in keeping with the character of the site. St Brides Castle in Pembrokeshire and Lodge Yard in the Yorkshire Dales have both won prestigious gardening awards; the gardens at…

Summer greenhouse crops may be coming to an end, but that’s no excuse to let your greenhouse stand empty over winter. October is the perfect time to plant up hardy crops that will give tasty pickings throughout the leaner winter months and well into spring. From spicy salad leaves and buttery lettuce to stalwart spinach and vitamin-packed kales, now is the time to reinvent your winter greenhouse space into a powerhouse that’s packed with delicious and nutritious leafy edibles. Last month, we explained that it’s getting a bit late to sow these hardy edibles, but if you didn’t get round to sowing them, don’t worry. These days, garden centres and mail-order seed companies sell a huge range of plug plants that will fill the gap, helping you to get well…

How to collect seeds that will grow successfully Many seeds will produce new plants that are the same as the parents. But not all will, especially some named varieties. This is because plant breeding can affect reproduction – they might produce no seeds, or seeds that don’t germinate, or the offspring may be very different to the parents. For example with veg, many modern varieties are ‘F1 hybrids’, which aren’t suitable for seed collecting, so do check your original seed packets or plant labels. Wild plants or heirloom varieties are a more reliable choice for seed collecting, but if you really like something, it’s worth giving it a go – you may be pleasantly surprised by the results. Cross-pollination Unless your flowers are isolated, there is a chance they may…

VISIT GardenersWorld.com/what-to-do-now for more advice on the best crops to sow and plant this month, and how to do it. Gardeners' Worldoffer BLUEBERRY COLLECTION Early ‘New Hanover’ An early, heavy cropper with fruits of a good size but with a ‘wild blueberry’ flavour Mid ‘Blueray’ A popular, tasty mid-season blueberry variety providing big crops of juicy, sweet fruits Late ‘Ozarkblue’ Provides a big crop of delicious berries. One of the most popular varieties ◼ 3 x 9cm potted plants (1 of each variety) £14.97 £9.97 SAVE £5 (310022) Visit yougarden.com/RGW248 Call 0844 502 0050* quote code RGW248 Add £6.99 P&P Despatch in 7-10 working days. YouGarden Ltd, Eventus House, Sunderland Road, Market Deeping, PE6 8FD. Subject to availability. We reserve the right to send suitable substitute varieties of same/higher value. Closes on…

Pansy Cool Wave Mix pre-planted rattan baskets Blossoming in a gorgeous mix of blues, yellows and creams, these hardy pansies will light up your outdoor space on even the dullest winter day. Your two rattan baskets are delivered fully planted and ready to hang in a bright, sheltered spot. Height x Spread 40cm x 45cm Flowers Nov-Mar ◼ 2 x 35cm pre-planted rattan baskets £49.98 £39.98 SAVE £10 (450155) Pansy Cool Wave Berries and Cream pre-planted rattan baskets These trailing pansies produce an assortment of purple, violet and white blooms with a deliciously sweet fragrance. They have a long flowering period and will thrive in both cool and warm weather. Simply hang your pre-planted rattan baskets in any sunny or semi-shaded spot, water regularly and watch the flowers bloom! H x S…