Autumn Garden Checklist: What to Do Before Winter

What should you do in the garden in autumn?

An autumn garden checklist comes down to five jobs: clear and feed the soil, turn fallen leaves into something useful, protect tender plants before the first frost, shut down water and tools so they survive the cold, and leave some shelter for wildlife. In the Northern Hemisphere that is roughly September to November; in the Southern Hemisphere, March to May. Rather than a list of what to sow, this guide gives you the order to do things in, a table you can work through in a weekend, and the numbers that matter, from mulch depth to how much frost protection fleece really gives.

When to start: the first frost is the deadline

Most autumn jobs can wait until the first frost is forecast, but a few cannot. The RHS says winter wrappings are best put in place at the first warning of frost, which in the UK usually falls between September and November. Colorado State University Extension suggests planting trees and shrubs, and dividing perennials, before the ground freezes. So check your local forecast and start with anything frost-tender, then work down the list.

Autumn garden checklist at a glance

1. Clear and feed the soil

The RHS suggests clearing crops that have finished and adding them to the compost heap, then spreading a layer of garden compost over bare soil to improve it for next year. Leave the roots of old pea and bean plants in the ground: the RHS notes that as they break down they return nitrogen and organic matter to the soil. Where you will not plant until spring, sow a green manure instead. The RHS suggests winter field beans or grazing rye, and Colorado State lists cover crops such as annual rye, clover and vetch. A covered bed loses less soil to rain and has fewer weeds in spring.

Autumn is also a good time to mulch under fruit trees and bushes with homemade compost or leaf mould, according to the RHS. Cut asparagus stems back once the foliage has yellowed, and wear gloves, since some types have spines.

2. Turn fallen leaves into leaf mould

Fallen leaves are the most useful free material in an autumn garden. The RHS recommends oak, birch, beech, maple, hazel and hornbeam as the best leaves for leaf mould; tougher leaves such as walnut, plane and sweet chestnut take longer but still work. Pile them in a simple cage of four stakes and chicken wire, or pack them damp into perforated bin bags. Mowing over leaves on the lawn shreds them, and the RHS says shredded leaves can make usable leaf mould in about 6 to 12 months; whole leaves take longer. After about a year it makes a good mulch; after two years it becomes a fine, crumbly material for improving soil or potting mixes.

You do not have to bag everything. Colorado State suggests raking leaves over planting beds as a mulch about 4 to 5 cm (1.5 to 2 in) deep. Do clear thick layers off the lawn, though: Iowa State warns that heavy oak leaves mat down and can kill grass.

3. Protect tender plants before the frost

• Bring them in. Colorado State suggests bringing tender herbs indoors to overwinter, and the RHS advises moving citrus under frost-free glass and watering it less in winter. Houseplants that spent summer outside should come in too; our guide on how cold is too cold for houseplants gives the temperatures that matter.
• Wrap what stays out. The RHS suggests fleece, hessian, straw or bracken. Heavier grades of fleece give about 2 °C (3.5 °F) of protection from frost, so they help on a light frost but not in a deep freeze.
• Keep it dry. The RHS says a waterproof cover is essential, because wet and cold together cause the damage. Remove covers during long mild spells to prevent sweating and rot, and put them back when the cold returns.
• Cover crops in a cold snap. Colorado State suggests row covers for tender plants when temperatures drop below freezing, and wrapping the trunks of trees planted in the last two years.

Pots are more exposed than plants in the ground, because the whole root ball can freeze. For balcony gardens, see our list of hardy balcony plants, which covers wrapping and raising containers.

4. Shut down water and tools

Colorado State recommends blowing out and shutting off irrigation systems and insulating outdoor taps. Iowa State advises draining garden hoses and bringing them inside so they do not split. Clean soil off tools with a wire brush, then sharpen and oil the metal and store them dry; Iowa State also suggests cleaning and disinfecting pots before reuse and storing pesticides and fertilisers somewhere that stays above 4 °C (40 °F). Keep watering new trees and shrubs when the soil is dry: Iowa State says to keep checking them until the ground freezes, and Colorado State suggests watering on mild days above 4 °C (40 °F) through winter if needed.

5. Plant for spring, and leave some mess for wildlife

Mid autumn is the time for spring-flowering bulbs (Colorado State), garlic and overwintering onion sets (RHS), and trees and shrubs while the soil is still workable. Our guide to what to plant in November covers the planting side in detail.

Not every job is about tidying. Colorado State suggests leaving ornamental grass seed heads standing for winter interest and birds, building a brush pile of branches and leaves in a quiet corner as shelter for wildlife, and putting bird feeders back out. Collect seeds from your favourite plants as they ripen.

Write down what grew well and what did not while you still remember; it makes spring planning easier. If your garden spans pots, beds and a balcony, Flori lets you sort plants by location and set care reminders, so jobs like checking wrapped plants after a mild spell do not slip. For the indoor side of the season, see the seasonal plant care calendar.

Flori editorial team

Written and fact-checked by the Flori team. Every guide cites horticultural sources such as the RHS, university extension services and the ASPCA, and is updated when the advice changes. How we write our guides

General plant care information. Plants vary; when a plant is valuable or a problem spreads quickly, consult a local nursery or plant specialist.