Page 62 • The HERALD • 22nd August 2024 v THE HERALD - Your Community Magazine v All Aspects of Garden Work Undertaken • Driveways • Paving • Artificial Grass • Turfing • Decking • Fencing • Hedge Cutting • Landscaping Hythe Garden Contractors Family company established 1977 For a free quotation please call 023 8084 3556 or 023 8084 0378 SPADEWORK Family Landscaping & Fencing Team ] Decking & Natural Sandstone Paving ] Patios ] Driveways ] Block Paving ] Turfing ] All Types of Domestic & Commercial Fencing ] Security Fencing Supplied & Fitted Tel: (023) 8089 4909 Mobile: 07703 566814 u Free Estimates u Fully Insured ✿ DOWN THE GARDEN PATH ✿ Autumn and Winter Colour Woodlands Gardening Club meets on the second Tuesday of the month. Meetings start at 7.30pm at Netley Marsh Community Hall, Woodlands Road, Netley Marsh. eir next meeting takes place on Tuesday 10th September for a talk by Marcus Young titled ‘Autumn and Winter Colour’. On Tuesday 8th October for a talk by Mike Read titled ‘New Beginning Gravel to Grebe’. Visitors are very welcome at £2.50; for more information about the club, call Susanna on: 023 8029 2953. Autumn Advice for Hedgehogs from Marchwood Hedgehog Watch All of the seasons provide di erent di culties for hedgehogs but Autumn can be a particularly di cult time for baby hedgehogs and a busy and emotional time for hedgehog rescues due to the in ux of baby hedgehogs needing their help! • Mature females may have mated a second time and young females may produce their rst litter. • ese babies will struggle as their natural diet becomes scarcer and they will be unable to gain fat just to grow and increase in size, let alone to hibernate. • We may notice these babies foraging for food in daylight because they are so hungry. If we leave them to nature they will simply die. • ANY HEDGEHOG SEEN IN THE DAY IS NOT OK! Help from a rescue should be sought ASAP. • It is extremely important to support feed by simply providing a bowl of dry kitten food each evening purchased from the supermarket, and also to provide a shallow bowl of water for hedgehogs to drink from during Autumn months, for both our juveniles and our adult Hedgehogs, as adult hedgehog will also be building up fat reserves as they start to build winter nests. ey will need to be at least 600 gram to survive hibernation so will need to feed as much as possible. • “Hibernation is not a kind of rest or recuperation, it is an energy conservation strategy,” as the food they rely on such as worms, beetles and invertebrates become scarcer as the days shorten and temperatures drop. Even though climate change can prolong a proper winter, natural food will still be in decline for those hedgehogs that decide not to hibernate. • Bon re night also creates dangers. An unlit bon re is an ideal home for a hedgehog. Please do not build a bon re until the day it is due to be lit, or if you must build it before cover it with a tight, secure tarpaulin that a hedgehog cannot access. • References: Louise at East Boldre Hedgehog Rescue, e Hedgehog Book and Hedgehogs by Pat Morris Thank you for your support, Marchwood Hedgehog Watch Gardening in September - Late Summer Progresses into Autumn Advice from RHS September is generally a cooler, gustier month than August and the days are noticeably shorter. While there’s not as much to do in the ornamental garden at this time of the year, if you have a fruit or vegetable patch, you’ll be busy reaping the rewards of harvest. It’s also time to get out and start planting spring- owering bulbs for next year and you can collect seeds for next summer’s colour too. Make the most of the remaining warmth while you can! Top gardening jobs this month 1. Divide herbaceous perennials - Dividing perennials regularly will ensure healthy, vigorous plants that will continue to perform year a er year. It also o ers the opportunity to multiply your plants. 2. Pick autumn raspberries - Harvest regularly, to get fruits at the peak of ripeness, when richly coloured, plump and easy to pull o . Pick on a dry day, so the berries aren’t wet. 3. Collect and sow seed from perennials and hardy annuals - Growing plants from seed is generally straightforward and inexpensive. It is an opportunity to increase the number of plants in your garden for free. 4. Dig up remaining potatoes before slug damage spoils them. 5. Net ponds before leaf fall gets underway. 6. Keep up with watering of new plants, using rain or grey water if possible. 7. Start to reduce the frequency of houseplant watering. 8. Clean out cold frames and greenhouses so that they are ready for use in the autumn. 9. Cover leafy vegetable crops with bird-proof netting. 10. Plant spring owering bulbs.
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