Autumn gardening advice from RHS

Alison Patel writes: Water butts should be kicked into shape this autumn and they need an
annual clean to stop the water in them becoming pungent and clogged up
with algae.

That is the advice from the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), which has suggested to Telegraph readers that water butts should be emptied, their pipes should be disconnected and debris should be removed from the bottom of the pipes.

As they are designed to collect water from either open or down pipes,
guttering and downpipes need to be cleaned and checked for damage.

The RHS advises that gardeners should consider installing a water-butt filter with an overflow, which it said will reduce the amount of plant material that could clog the water butt.

They also need to have a lid that fits tightly to stop mosquitoes laying eggs in the water and gardeners concerned about odour and algae may want to try using a solution such as Biotal Refresh Rain Water Butt Treatment.

Lastly, those who want to be green and save pennies may want to think
about increasing the amount of water they collect by installing more
butts or even an underground rainwater harvesting tank.

Gardeners should eliminate weeds from their lawns as they such valuable moisture from the soil, the RHS advises.

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