Autumn, and the lawn is looking pretty poor after a fairly dry summer.

It won’t take much to bring it back to life, the rain will work its magic. But we can also do our bit with some autumn maintenance to help get it back to health for the winter months.

Scarify, or rake vigorously to remove thatch, which is old grass, dead moss and debris. If left these can stop water from penetrating.

Use a spring-tined rake, or if you have larger areas to cover, you can get an attachment for your mower.

Aerating, or spiking the lawn with a garden fork will relieve compaction from areas that have been trodden down over the summer and will allow water and air to get to the root area.

This only needs to be done every two to three years.

You can also use a hollow-tine aerator, which removes plugs of soil, sweep them up and then rake some top dressing into the holes it has created.

Top dress with a low-nitrogen autumn feed, not to be confused with spring feed, which is high-nitrogen.

Repair any patches that need it by reseeding with grass seed.

Clear leaves from lawn as they fall as they can increase risk of lawn disease, moss and worm casts. Add to compost bin to make a leaf mould an invaluable soil conditioner.

Reduce the frequency of mowing as growth is slowing.

Autumn Pond Care

Autumn is the best time to give your pond a bit of maintenance, as well as creatures living there are less active.

Remove any dead leaves and debris from pond plants or their decomposing vegetation will build up. Scoop up silt from the base which you can put on your border, leave a little to put back once you have given the liner a clean.

Use a net to protect your pond from falling leaves and remove any that get through as they can lower the oxygen content.