In these exceptional times, keep safe and keep gardening

• Lift onions and finish lifting any remaing garlic as the top leaves start to wither and go brown and dry carefully before cleaning for storage

• Keep watering, especially in the greenhouse or plants in pots that may need a drink once or twice a day in hot weather

• Dead head as often as you can to encourage new flowers to form to extend your enjoyment

• Keep picking beans and peas and keep them well watered or they will stop flowering

• Now is the time to do the summer pruning of Wisteria by cutting back the long stems of this year’s growth to about five or six leaves (and stop it extending further under the roof tiles!)

• August is also the time to do any formative pruning of apples and pears trained as an espalier, cordon or fan

• Pick and use chillies as they ripen on the plant or just enjoy the shapes and colours they produce

• Start taking some cuttings of those favourite half-hardy plants such as fuchsias and geraniums (zonal pelargoniums)

• Choose a dry day to gather seeds of summer flowering annuals, biennials, and perennials and collect into paper bags for storage

• Now is the perfect time to be sowing pansies and violas to give you that vibrant splash of colour throughout the dark winter months

• Remember to stop and enjoy your garden!