Gardeners must prune these two plants before exact date, expert warns

Time to whip out thosepruningshears, as autumn is set to be a busy time for those with green fingers – it's the perfect moment for tidying up your garden and giving your plants a good shape-up. Now that's summer, it's vital to prune your cherished plants to keep dead stems at bay and fend off any fungal diseases that might fancy settling in during the cooler months.

Gardening expert Sarah Raven has dished out the must-do gardening tasks to check off before September comes round. Sarah shared her wisdom on which plants need a trim and how best to approach the job.

READ MORE: Gardeners urged to move plants away from specific spot this week

She explains: "September is a busy time in the garden. Things can quickly change from summer to the onset of winter, so if you are organised you can really get on top of jobs now to save time and work next spring and to prevent having to work in colder, harsher conditions."

Dahlias

Kicking things off, dahlias are topping the pruning agenda this month. Adored for their dazzling display, these floral favourites will continue to splash colour until winter's chill takes hold – but only with the right pruning.

It's not just for show; sometimes a dahlia needs a strategic snip to shake off annoying insects or sicknesses. Sarah offers some sage advice for garden enthusiasts, saying: "Cut all the spent flowers off to the buds below them. With a little TLC, they'll keep flowering until the first hard frost."

She also encourages gardeners to give their tender perennials like pelargoniums, arctotis, argyranthemums and trailing verbenas a quick deadheading to reinvigorate their blooming spirit.

After tending to your roses with a trim or deadheading, Sarah suggests complementing this care with a splash of liquid seaweed or general fertiliser to really make them pop.

READ MORE: Brits urged to do 1 simple garden task during the heatwave

Climbing/rambling roses

For those with climbing or rambling roses, the expert points out that now's the time to prune, as soon as they finish flowering. To achieve the best results, she advises: "Remove suckers from the base of roses and trees. Remove any fallen leaves from the base of roses to prevent the spread of disease."

As autumn rolls in, it's crucial to tidy up your roses by clearing away old flowers and sickly leaves, and giving them a proper prune. It's also the ideal season to plant new roses or rearrange the ones you already have.