October monthly gardening activities

Explore our monthly activities to do in the garden with your children and young people in October.

October is the perfect time to harvest your autumn fruits – apples, raspberries and pears will all be ready for picking.
Plant new fruit trees, fruit cane and bushes. These will often come ‘bare root’ meaning they are not planted in a pot of soil. This is because they are in their dormant stage of growth and once planted, will shoot our roots and establish themselves ready for spring.
Keep growing your winter vegetables by planting onion sets, garlic cloves, broad beans and overwintering peas.
Harvest your pumpkins and squashes, using them to make a delicious soup or a fun autumnal display.
Finish collecting seeds from the garden to sow next year, feed to birds or share with the local community.
Trim back any hedges in your space and use any trimmings, sticks and branches to build a dead hedge that is beneficial for beetles and other wildlife.
Plant out spring cabbages.
Add soil improvers or organic matter to your growing area to give the microorganisms, insects and worms living in the soil extra food and nutrients.
Grow some indoor bulbs to give as a festive present! All you need to get started are some containers, bulbs and soil. This activity can also be done inside on a wet or cold day.
Divide established rhubarb crowns to create new plants.

Upcoming monthly gardening activities

November	December	Full calendar

This month is a good time to plant trees. Read more	Harvest remaining root crops such as leeks and parsnips. Read more	Take a look at all of our monthly gardening activities. Explore now

Celebrating Recycle Week

Recycle Week is Recycle Now’s flagship annual event, with a mission to encourage children, families and whole communities to recycle more by providing valuable information and advice.

Have a go at turning juice and milk cartons into seed trays. This is a great way to watch seeds and plants grow indoors on a windowsill.

Find out more

More ways to explore the outdoors

Use our fun craft and wildlife activities to learn more about the outdoors, growing and nature.

Build a hedgehog home with your class to give our spiky garden friends somewhere cosy to live in the colder months. Hedgehogs will reward you by eating any garden pests such as slugs or snails.
Create autumn bunting for your classroom using fallen leaves found in the garden or your community spaces. Pick leaves of different colours and shapes to create a beautiful display that will help pupils learn more about the types of trees and seasonal changes.
Make bird cakes or a bird feeder garland to give our garden birds some extra nutrients during winter. You can even use seeds that you’ve collected from your own garden to save costs.

Browse all resources