How do I get my garden ready for Autumn?

First of all, gardens don't have to close just because the season has changed. There are so many ways to still enjoy your garden as we enter the Autumnal period. Sometimes it's just about remembering to make a conscious effort to still enjoy your garden in the cooler seasons.

Make a Cosy Fire

A fire pit (or camp fire) is the perfect solution for if you want to enjoy your garden on an evening when the weather is a little chilly. You can choose to use your fire pit primarily for heat purposes, or as a tool to make toasted marshmallows, smores or even something more substantial like foil wrapped corn or sausages. One important thing to consider is that your fire wood might be more likely to get wet or damp throughout the colder months, so it's important to consider where is best to store your fire wood.

Grow some Autumn crops

You might be wondering what kind of things you can grow in Autumn; hopefully you'll be pleasantly surprised to know that there is actually quite a range of crops to choose from. Some of our favourite vegetables to plant this time of year include broad beans, garlic, onions, spinach, kale and peas. You can also grow fruit including Blueberries, Cherries, Raspberries and Strawberries. If you can coordinate your crops throughout the year, you can ensure that you frequently have new crops to grow, but also to harvest.

Add some colour

One of the things we often begin to miss as the weather grows colder, is a nice bright pop of colour. We typically associate autumn with darker, deeper colours and muted tones, which can make us feel nostalgic for summertime. Bright colours can be incorporated into your garden via bright plant pots, bright flowers or plants, or you can choose some bright decorations which add some different tones and textures.

Add some lighting

As well as missing pops of colour, autumn also means less sunlight each evening, which means we often end up finishing up our night plans early. To overcome this and make the most of your evenings, add some lighting which means that you might be more inclined to stay outside for longer. Yes, you might also need some cosy clothes to keep you warm, but don't let the dark nights cut your fun short.

Create a Sensory Garden

There are so many senses that can be explored in the garden. We've already covered sight with the lighting and colour, and taste with the range of crops you can grow. When it comes to the other senses, touch is definitely explored when doing gardening, embracing the autumnal air and generally being outside and experiencing the outdoors.

In relation to smell, there are two different paths to take; firstly, you can choose to embrace and encourage natural scents such as flowers, herbs and plants. On the other hand, you can choose to incorporate scented candles or incense to personalise your garden scents; the benefit of choosing the latter option is that you can changed the scent of your garden depending on what appeals to you on a particular day.

When it comes to hearing, there are two things to consider; first of all it's important to appreciate the sounds of nature – trees rustling, birds chirping, the crunching of the ground beneath your feet. If you want to add even more sounds, then pieces such as wind-chimes and water features can add charm and character to your garden.

See Autumn as an opportunity

It's a good idea to see Autumn as an opportunity to tidy up the garden and think about your future plans. This could be anything from cleaning away leaves, preparing soil, growing green manure or just generally tidying up.