And in the blink of an eye, another month has passed! September was an interesting month, weather-wise. We had very hot spells, heavy rains, high winds and temperatures dropping down to 3 degrees at night but at the time of writing it looks as if the early part of October is going to be relatively mild and sunny. Fingers crossed anyway!

October often tends to mark the proper start of a brand new autumn, probably my favourite season in any garden.

After our world-famous spring displays, autumn is rightly seen as Leonardslee Lakes and Garden’s next-best season for sheer wonder and visual beauty.  The colours start to deepen and get richer but there is also still enough warmth and moisture in the soil for growth to continue for much of the month. It’s a fantastic time for the keen photographer too as the fiery display of autumnal foliage starts to put on its annual show. You’ll find the aptly named Maple Walk will be ablaze with colourful Acer foliage for instance, but there many other hot spots at this time of year. You’ll be able to spot seasonal specimen trees studded throughout the garden walks including several Liquidambar styraciflua and Nyssa sylvatica, two personal favourites of mine. Some of the best examples of foliage colour can be seen reflecting in one of our seven lakes across the estate so make sure you have a good wander during autumn and November to catch all that’s on offer.

More to catch your eye through autumn

It’s not just the colourful foliage that catches your eye in autumn though. The berries on our Sorbus trees (commonly known as the Rowan), flowering dogwoods (Cornus sp.), Cotoneaster, Euonymus (Spindle), Viburnum and holly (Ilex sp.) bushes are another highlight during October and beyond. Hopefully they’ll also still be some fruits on our Decaisnea fargesii along Bluebell Bank. Its common names are the Blue Sausage Tree or Dead Man’s Fingers Tree, and once you see it you’ll understand why! The skin and the seeds are poisonous however so make sure you leave them on the tree where they belong.

It’s also worth seeking out some of the fantastic, unusual bark on display at the moment. Birch Grove at the bottom of Bluebell Bank has a variety of birch trees including Betula utilis and Betula nigra, both of which have stunning bark. We plan to underplant these trees with a variety of Cyclamen corms this autumn too. My favourite birch tree however is probably Betula ermanii with its elegant white and salmon pink hues, a beautiful example of which can be found along the west side path of Middle Pond. On the east side of the lakes, Maple Walk has a number of Acer griseum trees and other Snake Bark Maples to enjoy too. And why not have a look at the peeling, multi-coloured bark of our giant Eucalyptus trees on the way down to the bottom of the valley too. Eucalyptus pauciflora (aka the Snow Gum Tree) can be found below the house just before you start to wind down Bluebell Bank path. Our conifer collection in the Pinetum also provides interest all year round but autumn is the time when the many different coloured and shaped cones start to catch the eye. Crikey, that’s a lot to try and see - make sure you leave yourself enough time!

And if we’re lucky and there are no major early frosts, some of the herbaceous displays around the house and the edges of the Rock Garden should have plenty of late colour and interest on offer too. Late flowering Salvia such as ‘Amistad’, ‘Black and Blue’ and Salvia involucrata ‘Bethellii’ (a particular favourite of mine) are great examples, joined by the likes of late Sedums and Dahlias, Ensete ventricosum ‘Maurellii’ (the Black Abyssinian Banana) and interesting seeds heads on the likes of Eryngium agarvifolium for instance.

Leonardslee Gardening Team

This time of year is one of the busiest for the garden team here at Leonardslee. One key area for our work in the garden during the months ahead focuses on keeping our lawns looking lush and lovely!  Although the grass in the garden will continue to grow at a slower rate throughout autumn, it won’t yet be fully dormant.  October is therefore a great time to start the autumn turf care regime and this can take many forms.  Aerating a lawn is the process of improving compaction and drainage in the soil by making holes in the turf.  This will also encourage root growth and improve oxygen content at root level.  It can be done with a garden fork on small lawns or with a powered machine on larger areas.  Scarifying a lawn involves scratching and scraping away at the surface to remove thatch (a build-up of dead grass and moss that can reduce light and moisture penetration).  It can be done with a strong wire rake on small areas or again a powered scarifier machine for larger lawns.  Another key autumn turf job includes applying a sandy top dressing to improve soil texture and encourage rooting.  This is best done after aeration.  Applying an autumn feed high in phosphates, to improve root development, is also a good idea at this time of year.  October is also ideal for carrying out any re-seeding or re-turfing of worn areas of lawn while the temperatures are still not too cold and the chance of rain is high.

Another key job for October that we’ll be getting our green fingers stuck into is planting. Autumn is a great time for getting new plants in the ground. Not only is the soil still relatively warm, it will also be a little soft from the early seasonal rainfall. This makes it perfect for allowing new roots to establish and get bedded in before the dormant winter season hits. Planting in autumn also reduces the need for regular watering because hopefully nature will be doing that job for you. This year we’ll be planting a large number of later flowering Rhododendrons and Camellias to increase our Summer interest for 2025 and beyond. We’ll also be adding to our Cornus (or Dogwood) collection across the garden as well as new types of Sorbus (or Rowan) tree with more unusual pink, white or yellow berries. We’ll also start our mammoth bulb planting project for this year in October. We have over 16,000 bulbs arriving that will be added to areas such as the exit lawn, Interlude drive and Birch Grove as well as in the various beds, borders, raised beds and containers around the formal gardens.

Blimey, we’re going to be busy! So, as you can see, lots and lots to see and do in the garden here at the moment as the garden enters a new phase once again.

I would like to draw your attention to a couple of guided tours that will be happening during the month ahead. We have fungi walks taking place on October 9th and 16th as well as the first in a number of a seasonal walks that I’ll be giving on the 23rd.

Add to these the regular guided tours on the 7th and the 16th for only £5.00 per person and you have plenty of opportunities to find out more about the garden and the plants that grow here. I look forward to seeing you all here again soon.

Jamie Harris, Head Gardener