AFTER a mild winter and an early spring, a sudden blizzard from the south knocked my poor garden off its socks.
Luckily it was short lived and as I'd got my petunia punnets under cover just in time, all was well, though my precious tree peony flowers took a bit of a beating.
There's always a heap of things to do in the garden in October and it's a lovely month to be outdoors doing them.
I try to clear the decks first by getting the last of my winter pruning out of the way.
Deciduous shrubs such as wintersweet (Chimomanthus praecox), Burkwood's viburnum (V. x burkwoodii), japonica (Chaenomeles) and winter honeysuckle (Lonicera fragrantissima) are coming into leaf, so it's easy to spot any dead wood that needs removing.
Flowering hedges of evergreen laurustinus (Viburnum tinus) and Indian hawthorn (Raphiolepis) need hard cutting back now to encourage next year's flowers.
If you want to prevent native shrubs like mint bush (Prostanthera) and wattles (Acacia) becoming woody and bare at the base, tip prune them now as their flowers fade but before they put out new growth.
Weeding is another October task that I desperately try to keep on top of.
If you have a lot of weeds and are feeling discouraged, cut off the flowers, at least that stops them from setting seed and spreading even further.
Don't forget you can make your own liquid fertiliser from the weeds you pull up (The Land, September 3).
Liquid fertiliser is ideal if you take a "little and often" approach to feeding the garden: you can water in a bucket or two from a watering can whenever you have a spare five minutes.
If you are still lighting fires, wood ash is another brilliant soil additive.
Wood ashes contain up to 10 per cent potash which helps plants resist disease, build strong roots and ripen fruit.
They are alkaline so are a useful way of increasing soil pH if your soil is acid, as is quite likely in NSW.
Spread thinly so they don't pack down, and don't put them near acid-soil loving camellias and azaleas.
October is the last chance to spread compost, while ground is still cool and damp from winter.
Compost is another wonderful fertiliser, spread it on the surface and worms will do the rest.
This is also a good month to spread a weed-suppressing mulch like lucerne hay, before spring growth takes over.
Spring flowering bulbs are nearly over but there's just time to label them if you want to lift and divide them later.
If you'd like your bulbs to multiply underground rather than set seed, you need to deadhead them.
Some bulbs are well behaved but others like grape hyacinths and drumstick allium (A. spaerocephalon) become invasive over time.
You can start sowing herbs including coriander, basil, dill and oregano now.
You can sow salad veggies such as capsicums, tomatoes and cucumbers, but keep under cover until all danger of frost has passed.
My last October task is to cut back my purple wallflowers that have flowered non-stop since July, and take cuttings for next winter.
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