What to do in your garden in September

Step by step guide
to
Composting.

Well, good old blighty has given us some wonderful weather this year. Rain, rain and more rain has been the general feel interspersed with the odd week of sunshine to help our beloved plants along. After a summer like the one we have had, some of you will probably be glad that it's nearly over. We have heard lots of flood stories this year with some allotments and gardens under water for a few weeks, if not more. Follow the link for more details on how to revive your plants and gardens after a flood.

In your:

plus:

For those of you who have managed to escape the ravages of the very wet weather and actually managed to grow some summer flowering and fruiting vegetables, they may be beginning to die back by now and there's probably some tidying up to be done. Remove any dead growth, and tidy up plant debris to make garden compost. Don't be too tidy though, always leave some piles of leaves for beneficial creatures to bed down in for the winter.

Our factsheet How to make compost is available to download or can be purchased by contacting the Information Section at Garden Organic Ryton. Also our step by step booklet 'Composting' is available from the Organic Gardening Catalogue.

Vegetable waste in
the compost

Finished compost

Runner bean trench

Organic Gardening "Do's"

A checklist for going organic in your garden

For more detailed guidance on what is, and isn't organic, have a browse through the Garden Organic Guidelines for Organic Gardeners

In general

Garden Organic's forthcoming events include:

6th - 21st September: Organic Fortnight (Includes free tastings in the shop every day)
During Organic Fortnight, Garden Organic Ryton will hold daily organic tastings in its shop between 12pm and 2pm, enabling visitors to sample organic products ranging from delicious breads, to mouthwatering fruit juices.
11th - 13th September: Heritage Open Days (Free entry to all to site)
On Friday 12th September, 11am to 1pm, Roberto Perez, an internationally renowned urban agriculture activist and star of the film The Power of Community from Cuba, will give a talk at Garden Organic Ryton on his experiences of permaculture. The talk costs £5 and includes access to the gardens. The talk is open to all, but people involved in the UK Transition Towns movement may find it of particular interest.
20th September: Heritage Seed Library Harvest Event On Saturday 20 September, 10am – 5pm
Garden Organic's world renowned Heritage Seed Library will hold its harvest event with talks on preserving our gardening heritage and seed saving. Tours of the seed library will also be held and a chance to see some of the collection's rare and unusual vegetable varieties. Tastings on the day will include Heritage Seed Library produce
Apple Day at Garden Organic Ryton
- 27th - 28th September: Apple Weekend at Garden Organic's Walled Kitchen Garden at Audley End
- Sunday, 5th October 2008: Apple Day at Garden Organic Ryton from 10am to 5pm
Visitors young and old, to Apple Day and Apple Weekend, should expect a celebration of all things apple related. Come and enjoy apple identification, apple tastings, orchard tours, apple growing tips, and apple varieties galore. There will also be the opportunity to buy apple trees (including The Bright Future apple), sample cider and see, taste and enjoy scrumptious apples such as Sunset, Discovery and King of the Pippins, as well as old Essex varieties at the Audley End event.
26th October: Pumpkin Day
Visitors to Garden Organic's Pumpkin Day event can enjoy a host of pumpkin themed activities including tastings and jack-o-lantern carving. There will also be captivating talks on owls, bats and creepy crawlies. Budding growers can pick up hints and tips on growing their own juicy pumpkins next year and can take in over ten-acres of autumnal organic gardens.
This section of the Garden Organic website - What to do in your garden now - is produced by the Knowledge Development Section of Garden Organic – the organic organisation. If you are a member of Garden Organic, you also have access to our full range of factsheets and other useful information on the Garden Organic website, and to our Organic Gardening helpline – by email, phone and letter. More information here about the benefits of joining Garden Organic.

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