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Much of my gardening time in September is spent planning for spring colour. I'm not wishing the year away - I love autumn in all its fading glory - but now is the time to buy spring-flowering bulbs for planting over the next couple of months

Layer long sideshoots of border carnations into soil prepared with potting compost. Make a slit in each stem, peg down to hold firm, and wait to rootWater plants, such as roses, climbers and shrubs growing against dry sunny wallsPlant bulbs of the Madonna

Scarlet beetles (6mm - 8mm long) with black heads eat the leaves, flowers and seedpods of lilies and other members of the lily family. Don't mistake them for ladybirds. Between April and September the beetles lay eggs on the undersides of leaves

bulbs (including lilies) can take at least three years and often longer to grow into plants of flowering size.Then there's the anticipation of the unexpected, as the resulting plants may be a result of cross pollination with other varieties, so not grow

horticultural fleece handy to protect the plants with.AdamBefore the first frosts in autumn, repot all of the plants and bring them inside for winter.You can grow the eucomis from bulbs planted in spring.More advice on growing exotic plantsDealing with canna

there are not enough, because I bet you a shiny 20p piece that in a couple of weeks, when they have died back and other things have doubled in size, that you will have completely forgotten.I plant a lot of bulbs every year for various clients — last autumn I had about

not to disturb the bulbs and root system too much.Fill any gaps with more compost, ensuring all the plants are firmly bedded in. Water the pot well and move it to its final position.AdamWe used the large leaved snowdrop, Galanthus elwesii, but any other variety

nitrogen-fixing nodules feed the bulbs, but even if they don't the pots look a lot nicer in autumn with a covering of leaves. I then let them grow right through spring – they help hide the bulb’s foliage as it dies down, and of course, the flowers are a

display is lovely, but there is a problem I need to address. The soil along the drive is thin and inclined to get compacted, and some clumps are rather congested. A few bulbs are producing leaf and no flower, a phenomenon known as  'blindness'. But, if I

As temperatures rise and summer sets in, give your container plants a little time and care. Water, feed and deadhead them regularly over the next few weeks and you can keep plants flowering and looking good right into autumn.Container plants