I love spring bulbs, for their diversity in flowering times and colours,  but also they are reminder that spring will come  and with it the gardening year  will starts again.  I feel optimistic when planting out bulbs and this year I  am keen to plant scented Narcissus (daffodils) both in the garden and in containers where they can be put to enjoy the scent.

I have also been renewing plants of Erysimum, common name Wallflower, also highly scented and a long flowering perennial which will  reward with flowers for  several weeks through all of spring. Wallflowers are not a long lasting plant  and they do need

to be replaced every few years as they tend to become woody, but look great planted with contrasting or matching Tulips. Wallflower and tulips make a great combination,  the only drawback is that mice and squirrels love tulips bulbs as well,  and if these pests are a problem,  a net or mesh over the top of the soil until the shoots come through should act as a deterrent, and then remove it.

Tulips come in so many shapes, sizes and colours as the images shows on the left Tulip Lady Jane very different to the one below. 

If you are not sure when planting bulbs a good rule of thumb is to plant 3x the bulb size in depth and for more information about planting spring bulbs and tulips.

Spring bulbs are traditionally planted in the autumn, and planted at different times,  Narcissus in September, Tulips and Crocus in October & November. Snow drops, Galanthus, are in fact best planted "in the green" which is as small plants. Recent studies have shown that planting bulbs late still works so there is still plenty of time to plant for a spring display and many stores and on line suppliers have bulbs on offer at this later stage.

Early autumn is a good time to make a wood pile to help wildlife through the winter.  You don't need a large garden to do this just a small of wood or logs as in the image will help and is just the spot for frogs and newts to spend the winter. This wood pile is near the pond so ideal for wildlife. Wood piles are also a home for toads, centipedes and beetles. 

The wood pile is best placed in dappled shade as full sun will tend to be too hot for the insects which also provide food for garden birds, small reptiles and mammals. A raft of insects like decaying wood and providing a wood pile supports the insects on which other species feed. Wrens like to eat small invertebrates which will live in wood piles and often moss will accumulate in the pile used for nest-building in the spring.

Woodlouses favour wood piles and they are lunch to many species including Shrews toads and spiders. A wood pile also looks attractive in a natural setting as well as helping biodiversity in the garden.

During October and November I try to clear  and tidy up the borders; what and how much to cut back is often a matter of preference. Tidy borders or more relaxed garden borders?  

Sometimes the plant solves the problem, the image left is a Hosta even before frost it is collapsing and better cut down to the ground. Quite often you don't even need to cut the leaves come away in your hands.

I have already cut back the Delphiniums whose foliage looked tatty by September, and Peonies are on the point of collapsing as well. Most  of the herbaceous plants can be cut back to soil level, such as Hosta, Delphinium, Alchemilla mollis, Crocosmia, some of the hardy geraniums (you will know which they will look brown) Heuchera, Stachys byzantina.  There are other perennials which I cut back to allow the new growth such as Nepeta, Aquilegia, but you need to be careful not to damage the new growth which on some early spring flowering plants, such as Aquilegia will already be visible. The image below left shows the new growth, so when cutting back cut the stems just above the growth. 

Some perennial plants are best left untouched for cover or because they stay attractive during the winter. Slightly tender perennials such as Penstemon are best left uncut as the top growth may offer some winter protection.

Sedum has just lovely flowers which look beautiful dusted with snow or frosted, as in the image below and I leave the flower heads on until early spring. This time of year, with all the cutting back, I find once I remove the canopy of the perennials the weeds are there to be seen, and plenty of them. October, November and even December on mild days are good for weeding. It maybe my imagination, but I find the weeds pull out easier after a couple of frosts to loosen the soil.

Lovely to see at this time of year the simple sight of a spider's web strung across the plants  highlighted by the sun. I just can't cut those plants down to later when the spiders have disappeared for the winter.

Charlecote Park is a lovely NHS property well worth a visit if you are around the Stratford Upon Avon area. The house is impressive,  a fantastic example of  Elizabethan history surrounded by attractive gardens and a very large area of parkland which provides great country walks. It is close to the river Avon making the park attractive to wildlife.  There is a good contrast between the formal gardens, and the Parterre and the natural parkland with deer.

On the lookout  as always for something different I rather liked the annual grass Pennisetum glaucum Purple Majesty growing up against a tree, in the image below right

At this time of year, September, there is a really splendid eyecatching display of edible and ornamental gourds.  I tried the edible gourd Crown Prince which has been lovely roasted and is about to become soup. Also I couldn't resist buying some of the stunning ornamental gourds to make an autumn display.