Continue to collect seeds from your perennials and annuals as they ripen and store them in paper bags or envelopes to make sure that they dry completely. It is a good idea to label and date them as you go along so that you can sow them within their optimum sowing period. Maurice - our seed propagator - sows all his seeds within one year of collection. Click here for more of his tips for successful seed sowing and germination.

Autumn is a wonderful time to select and plant new perennials. The soil is warm and there is sufficient time for the plants to put down good roots before the winter. Obviously this year with a hosepipe ban it is important to prioritise those plants that you can keep watered sufficiently with a watering can until they are established. Don’t forget to water them well before planting too by plunging them in a bucket of water until the root ball is soaked.

Keep deadheading your Helenium, Dahlia and Geum ‘Totally Tangerine’ to encourage further flowering. Autumn is a great time of the year to pick flowers for the house, the colour palette is wonderful. Firm favourites are Chrysanthemum, Symphyotrichum, Dahlia, Hylotelephium and ornamental grasses.

Lift and divide tired looking perennials that have not been split for 3-4 years. You can tell that they need to be divided as either the centre of the plant has died off and there is a ring of new growth around it or the plant’s flowering performance has dipped significantly. Good candidates for autumn division are Geranium, Primula, Hylotelephium, Helenium and Rudbeckia.

Time to start tidying up. Empty out, clean and disinfect the greenhouse and cold frames before you use them for overwintering plants. It is better to do it while the sun is shining as they dry out quicker.