October is a month of transformation in most gardens, and that’s especially true Show Content
October is a month of transformation in most gardens, and that’s especially true at #shawscornernt (1). As we close our garden to the public for the year, the assumption might be that plant growth slows—and with it, our workload. But the opposite is true! This is our busiest time, and despite the rain, our volunteers put in an incredible 238 hours to prepare the garden for the future.
🌱 Refreshing the Entrance Borders (2): The team lifted and divided the herbaceous perennials in the entrance borders (3). To simplify next year’s display, we reduced the variety of plants, creating deliberate clumps of the same species to better fill the space. Surplus plants were saved for potting and selling in 2025 (5). We also removed overcrowded shrubs and mulched the refreshed beds while the soil temperatures were still warm, giving the borders a fresh start (4).
🍏 Apple Day Success: On October 20th, we hosted the first Apple Day (6) since 2018, with expertly identified apples by #EEAOP. Despite the rain brought by Storm Ashley and limited social media promotion, it became our busiest single day of the year! From setup to leading six hours of tours, I saw incredible engagement, including one visitor who said they’d never look at an apple the same way again. Another highlight was an elderly gentleman reminiscing about the taste of apples from his childhood—a flavor he said he’d been searching for 50 years. Moments like these remind us why we do what we do. That said there were many takeaways on how to make 2025 even better.
🌸 Transforming the Mirror Beds: The biggest task of the month was tackling the mirror beds, which hadn’t been renovated since they were planted in 1996.(7) Overrun with weeds like enchanter’s nightshade and ground elder, they required extensive care. Together we… Continued in the comments 👇
#GardeningSeason #VolunteerWork #AppleDay #HistoricGardens #HerbaceousBorders #NationalTrust #Shawscornernt #horticulture #liftanddivide #gardenrenovation #visithertfordshire #harpenden #wheathapstead #welwyngardencity #herts #work diary #monthlyroundup #stormashley