Monthly Q&A - October 2023 | BBC Gardeners World Magazine

Watch the answers to the October questions, which were:

How can I turn a small patch of lawn into a wildflower meadow?
Is it ok to plant out climbing roses now?
When should I plant out my chitted potatoes?
What is the right order for scarifying, mowing, and applying weed and feed to my lawn?
Should I remove my seedlings from the propagator and put them on my windowsill?

It looks like I’ve lost my evergreen agapanthus in the wintery weather, is there anything I can do to save it?
Can I prune a fuchsia during winter, or should I wait until spring?
Is it possible to move a Salvia x jamensis 'Hot Lips', and if so, when?
What is the best way to eliminate mealybug on my orchids and streptocarpus?
Can I grow asparagus in a raised bed, and how many crowns would fit in?

My water butt smells, can I still use this water for vegetables and other plants?
How do I look after my banana plant in winter?
How can I help my amaryllis flower again?
My beech hedge is infested with woolly aphid, what can I do?
Hardly any of my beetroot plugs have grown, what has happened?

What can I use my greenhouse for over winter? I'm a novice gardener.
How do I winter mulch a block of perennials in a border without burying the crowns? Or is it OK to do that?
How can I improve the flowering of an old climbing rose?
Do I need to remove a variegated alder that has coral spots on the bark?
How do I get rid of worm casts in my lawn?

How can I get my peat free compost to retain water?
My raspberries got muddled when planting. Can I prune without knowing if they’re summer or autumn-fruiting?
Should I remove the large figs on my tree, as they have reached the correct size but aren’t ripening?
What can I do to get rid of fuchsia gall mite?
I bought some 9cm potted perennials in an autumn sale. Should I pot them on and let them establish in pots until spring or should I put them straight into the borders?

How can I reuse old compost?
Should I put pot feet or saucers under my containers?
My lawn looks terrible after summer, and crows are pecking it. What can I do?
My wisteria has died, but is shooting from the base. Will those new shoots flower?
My plum tree has brown rot. What should I do?

What is the best way to revive badly dehydrated potted hydrangeas?
I often read about adding ‘loam’ to compost, but what is ‘loam’?
My roses are covered in black spot. I don't want to spray them. Are there any other methods to control it?
Why have my runner beans failed?
Lots of my brassicas have grown with no centre – cauliflowers with no curds, cabbages with no heart, calabrese with no heads. What is the cause?

How often should I water my dahlias and sweet peas?
Lots of my plants have powdery mildew. What should I do about it?
My pinks have grown very leggy. When is a good time to take cuttings?
Why are my vegetable plants all leaves and no fruit?
My summer-fruiting raspberries have several very long, non-fruiting stems. Are they for next year’s harvest or do they need cutting back?