With the temperature finally feeling like autumn, I’m sure the first frosts are not too far away. So it’s time to discuss if we should lift or not to lift – what I’m talking about are dahlias, of course!

Those who know me know I love dahlias and with more than 120 plants grown this year, I have already started planning for next year!

Dahlias are very frost sensitive and after the first frost they look very sad – and that’s when I start to cut them all down and put them on the compost heap.

But I made a map of what’s where, so I know what tubers are in the ground. What to keep is the trick – what went well on the show bench and, most importantly, the varieties I loved!

Last year I didn’t lift any but kept them all in the ground as I didn’t really know where I was going to store them.

Now if, like me, you get hooked and want to start showing, the best flowers come from cuttings, which gives rise to the question ‘to lift or not to lift?’

What I mean by this is should you dig up the tubers at this time of year or not? And to be honest, there is no right or wrong answer.

My allotment neighbour who just wants to grow pretty flowers has chosen to leave them in the ground over winter. But if you follow suit, it’s important to make sure they are protected from the frost.

The tubers will take a bit of frost – but not too much! They need to be heavily mulched and you can use old compost, bark or woodchip; personally I wouldn’t use manure as this might rot the tubers.

So this year I will be lifting the ones I want to propagate from and either digging up and getting rid of the others, or just leaving them in the ground over winter.

I will lift them one variety at a time, and wash them off as I dig them up to get most of the soil off them. This will help to help prevent the tubers rotting over the winter. They will then go in my heated greenhouse to dry out.

Once dry, they will be sorted, and any damaged bits cut off. I will then store then through winter in dry compost or sawdust.

And for anyone thinking of planting dahlias, there are literally thousands of varieties to choose from.

In the spring, most garden centres have a large variety to choose from, or you could visit a specialist nursery like Gilberts Dahlias near Romsey where the staff are super knowledgeable and very happy to help.

Some other jobs to be doing now include pruning apples and pears – and they’ll also benefit from some compost around the base as a mulch.

With younger, staked trees, check the stakes are firm and the ties are secure. Winter winds can shake the roots loose on young trees, causing poor growth – or even worse.

Love them or hate them, Brussels sprouts will also benefit from staking too, as they get heavy and the wind can break the fine roots. This will cause the sprouts to go to seed.

They will also benefit from a high nitrogen feed at this time of year – all leafy plants need nitrogen and if you think about it, that’s all sprouts are – little balls of leaves!