With frost warnings echoing in my ear, I am trying to be very single-minded in my tasks this month. I can't really relax until all tender plants are in the (just) frostfree greenhouse. I've also made a start on putting the best dahlias into the garage.

They have been cut back, soil removed, wrapped in newspaper, and placed upside down in my bargain shoe hangers. It worked brilliantly last year, so fingers crossed! I also placed bags of un-opened horse manure on some very large dahlias that I left in the garden.

These acted as a duvet, and were in just the right place in early summer to bulk up the soil so that it was nice and rich - just what dahlias love! True, the bags do not look good. So having a large garden, the ones out of sight are more likely to get treated this way.

The garden is still ablaze with colour, these are some of my favourites:- Cyclamen Hederifolium.

They are smaller than the persicum which are everywhere at this time of year but are not hardy.

Aster(Michaelmas Daisy), my favourite is Aster Frikartii Monch which starts flowering in July and is still beautiful.

Schizostylis Coccinea, like a small gladioli, that glows through October and November.

Liriope Muscari – they have evergreen grassy leaves, and produce lilac grape hyacinth type flowers, a tidy, easy plant that should be used more often.

The poisonous Monkshood, their rich blue flowers are stunning amongst the tall grasses, which are interspersed with the self-seeding Verbena Bonariensis. All we need now is some late sunshine!