Column: September is a crucial time to prepare your garden for the winter

The weather may still be warm, especially in the south, and there may still be lots of butterflies about in particular red admirals and small tortoiseshells, but if you look around the garden you will sees signs of autumn everywhere.

Time to start thinking about planting bulbs in beds and containers - that will provide bumblebees and honeybees with pollen when they are first searching for food in the spring and will provide you with a seasonal flower-filled garden.

You can start with snowdrops that flower in February and then move on to crocuses and daffodils followed by tulips and alliums that take you through to May.

Work out where you are going to plant your bulbs before you buy them. Crocuses will fit into gaps at the front of a border. Planting tulips in pots can bring a spring floral display to patios or terraces from March through to May.

Daffodils are best planted in groups of ten or more and can flower through to late spring, although the more northerly you live the later the flowering will be.

Try Narcissus ‘Jetfire’ – grows to 20cm tall, flowers in March/April with dainty golden yellow petals and bright orange trumpet; Narcissus Jenny; 30cm in height, with creamy-white petals and a slender lemon-yellow trumpet; or Narcissus Actaea – 45cm in height, with fragrant, pure white flowers and a small, red-rimmed yellow cup, ideal for late spring.

Some spring flowering bulbs, such as wood anemones and snowdrops, have adapted to growing under the canopy of trees and shrubs - completing their life cycle before deciduous trees and shrubs come into full leaf, making the most of the early spring sunlight.

However, other spring–flowering bulbs like open space where there is no shade.

Apart from selecting and planting spring bulbs, other top jobs for gardeners this month include: Divide herbaceous perennials. This not only ensures healthy, vigorous plants that will continue to perform year after year but also gives you the opportunity to multiply your plants.

Take cuttings of tender perennials such as Pelargonium. These plants often do better grown from new cuttings each year. If you don’t have a greenhouse, then use a light windowsill to grow them on.

Collect and sow seed from perennials and hardy annuals. Growing plants from seed is straightforward and inexpensive and lets you increase the number of plants in your garden for free.

Plus, here’s what the experts have to say:

September is generally a cooler, gustier month than August and the days are noticeably shorter. While there’s not as much to do in the ornamental garden at this time of the year, if you have a fruit or vegetable patch, you’ll be busy reaping the rewards of harvest. It’s also time to get out and start planting spring-flowering bulbs for next year and you can collect seeds for next summer’s colour too. Make the most of the remaining warmth while you can!

RHS