Fertilise plants, remove any dead flowers, mulch and water well.
Plant out seedlings such as Alyssums, Ageratums, Gomphrenas in empty corners and sow slow-growing, winter-flowering annuals like Primulas, ranunculus and ornamental cabbages.
Sow in cooler areas for slow-growing, winter-flowering annuals like Ornamental Cabbage, ranunculus and Primula.
Bulbs:
Plant Nerinas now, and feed with wood ash, to ensure great splashes of autumn colour.
Deadhead Crinum plants, catch their seed and fertilise.
Remove dead leaves of Watsonias and Dierama.
Divide Beard Irises and plant out the strong and young rhizomes. Plant them in shallow grooves and cut foliage off 2cm long.
Plant out (pre-chilled) Lilium bulbs.
Perennials:
Pinch back the growing tips of chrysanthemums.
Divide and re-plant gazanias and fertilise ground covers.
Cut back spring-flowering groundcovers and mulch well.
Roses:
Feed plants once a month and water every 4 days.
Pinch back strong growth on new roses by a third.
Spray against aphids and thrips, powdery mildew and bollworm.
Lawns:
Lift the lawnmower's blades.
Fertilise with L:A:N for green leaf growth and 2:3:2 for lawn matting. Tip: to rid your lawn of moles, use Ammonium Sulphate in the place of L:A:N, making it too acidic for the earthworms that moles area after. The worms will move and the moles will follow! Water well afterwards. Avoid fertilising if you're going on holiday.
Epsom Salts are high in magnesium and will help your lawn (and rest of garden) thrive and guard against pests!
Propagation:
Make semi-hardwood cuttings of lavender, Pelargoniums, Hydrangeas, Pentas, Fuchsias, Hypericum, etc.
Pruning:
Prune spring-flowering shrubs like Wigela and climbers like Trachelospermum jasminoides.
Cut lemon scented verbena and Santolina back after flowering.
Hydrangeas:
Mulch and fertilise plants.
Cut mature flower heads for the Christmas table.
Herbs:
Cut rocket back to use in the kitchen and to encourage new growth.
Cut basil back too and don't allow the plant to flower. A flowering basil lives shorter and loses its wonderful taste.
Houseplants:
Take plants outside and spray them off in a cool, shady area. Once they are dry bring them in immediately.
Vegetables:
If you have an outside vegetable garden, only plant strong growing lettuce varieties that are heatproof.
Harvest vegetables regularly - ask a good friend to help while away on holiday.
Create a miniature veggie garden in pots. Grow your salad plants together.
Harvest onions and baby potatoes after flowering.
Irrigate tomatoes, cucumber and pumpkins early in the morning and avoid splashing on the leaves.
Fruit:
Deal with fruit fly by means of bait, and also remove and burn all damaged and fallen fruit. Fertilise deciduous trees with 6:1:5 (100 - 200g) after harvesting. Lesser amounts where foliage are over-produced.
Apply 6:1:5 to citrus trees (well away from the trunk). Mulch and water well.
Irrigate grapes well.
Sow for paw paws in situ, but sow them in three-three groups. Ensure you've got one male tree for every 6 female trees. Female: the flowers are clustered tightly against the branches. Male: the flowers hang from tall stems.
Give less water to swelling melons.
Fertilise strawberries after harvesting and also feed avos and litchis.