Sage advice for autumn | In Fiona's Garden

Not to mention mellow fruitfulness - roses covered in hips, sacred bamboo (Nandina) carrying clusters of scarlet berries and my quinces and medlars almost ready to pick, though strictly speaking the medlars need frost to "blett" or soften them.

Salvias are doing brilliantly this year and not only the ornamental ones.

I recently admired a group of purple-leaf kitchen sage (Salvia officinalis 'Purpurascens') used as edging for a border crammed with interesting plants in Moira and Tony King's country garden.

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After blooming in early summer this sage grows into a mound that keeps its shape without clipping. I love seeing a useful kitchen herb used ornamentally and Moira's idea is inspiring me to try the green, cream and gold kitchen sage, S.o. 'Icterina' in the same way. Like 'Purpurascens' it loves full sun and good drainage.

April is the perfect month to move plants because it gives their roots time to settle and start growing again before the onset of winter. So I'll abide by the gardener's motto and Do it Now.

Shrubs you propagated in spring can be planted in autumn provided they're big enough.

Sometimes it pays to be patient - a gardener's least favourite word -a nicely rooted cutting generally does better during its first year of life in a 12 to 15 centimetre pot rather than the rough and tumble of the garden. It's far easier to look after a group of pots than the equivalent number of plants in a bed or border.

There's no holding back with bulbs though, the sooner they're underground the happier you'll be.

Tulips can wait until May but I'm rushing to get my orders in so as to avoid missing out on favourites.

Planting presupposes bare ground that's clear of weeds, especially perennial horrors like couch grass.

I'm enjoying weeding right now as I've just acquired a lovely new hand fork. I had to replace my old one (accidents happen) but to my annoyance the only hand forks I could find had flat tines. These don't slide between the roots of a weed nearly as easily as right-angled tines.

I finally solved the problem online, hurrah. Botanex in Bowral supply beautiful garden tools made in Holland by DeWit, including hand forks with ash handles, extra tough forged joints and their tines rotated 90 degrees for easier digging. Well worth the dollars: my fork arrived within three days accompanied by a lifetime guarantee.

I need a trowel as much as a fork at present as I'm lifting tree seedlings for friends and plant stalls.

Chinese Pistacia (P. sinensis), golden rain tree (Koelreuteria paniculata), trident maple (Acer buergeranum) and most prolific of all, English oak are seeding everywhere, it seems.

This is only going to get worse with time, the lawn under our oak being so thickly covered in acorns it's impossible to mow.

I'm bribing our grandchildren to pick them up, they can bend down more easily than I can.

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