There is a proliferation of gardening gadgets available for the time-poor technology lover. One of the most exciting has to be the robotic mower, which will not only cut the lawn but dispose of clippings by cutting little and often, leaving the cut grass on the lawn to act as a mulch. If you groan at the thought of cutting your lawn this may well be the ultimate time-saving gardening tool for you. Alternatively, you could follow the ‘growing’ trend and leave an area of grass to ‘do its own thing.’ Plant up the area with a succession of spring bulbs and some taller, ornamental grasses to give a stunning time-saving display of year-round interest.

Dahlias continue to flower exotically. Take off faded flower heads to extend the season through to the first frosts. Cut back to the next side shoot to stimulate new flowers to grow. The best way to extend the season of flowering is to continually deadhead every fading flower from the more tender plants in the garden.

 

Prune climbing roses when the flowers start to fade. If they are still growing strongly, with lots of flowers, wait until next month. Sometimes it’s hard to distinguish between a climbing rose and a rambling rose. Usually, ramblers are the roses that flower only once, normally in June, whereas climbers repeat flower almost all summer. It’s relatively straightforward to prune climbing roses. Using sharp secateurs, firstly remove any dead or diseased wood, then prune all the side shoots from all branches to two or three buds (these will form new growth next year). If there are new shoots growing from the base, these can be tied in to form the new framework of the plant.

Finish pruning evergreen hedges or topiary, such as yew and box, this month. This will give material for semi-ripe cuttings, if you want to increase your stock. Strip off all the leaves and side shoots so that only about 5cm of foliage remains and plant the stem into a container of gritty compost around the edge of a plant pot. Keep on a windowsill and water daily until roots have formed and you can plant them up individually. It’s always satisfying to get new plants for free and you can do this with rosemary, lavender, thyme, gooseberries, currants, flowering shrubs and even roses.

Another way of getting plants for free is to save seed every year. Sweet peas, nasturtiums and cosmos are perfect for this and very easy to grow.