But be careful not to let first impressions lead you up the garden path. The first thing you�re bound to see are fallen leaves, the grass too high or your seasonal plants with dried flowers and looking dirty; however there are other more urgent things to attend to that are less obvious but more serious.

Your garden may have been attacked by pests and diseases while you were away so you need to make a quick check for any symptoms to be able to treat the damaged plants as soon as possible.

One of the most serious problems that may have occurred in our absence is that the high winds that tend to accompany summer storms may have damaged trees or large bushes. If so they will need pruning, preferably by a professional.

A very common problem is that the fuses in the house may have blown during a storm; if they were not reset the programmed sprinkler system won�t work with catastrophic results. Trees, unless they are very young or recently planted will withstand a couple of weeks without watering, as will large bushes and the more resistant kinds of plants. But perennials and seasonal plants, grass, smaller bushes and species which need a lot of water won�t last a week without watering in the summer. The best thing to do is to have someone, a neighbour for example, keeping an eye out for power cuts.

It�s important to carry out a thorough check of the sprinkler system when you get back from holiday, and adjust the watering times depending on the state of the plants and on the weather if it has already started to change. Pay special attention to dry or withered plants; this could be due to not enough watering or over-watering, and it�s easy to find out which. Just dig down a little and feel the soil; then do whatever�s necessary to remedy the situation.

Nearly everything else you have to do is just tidying up:

• Mow the lawn several times, starting with the blades in the highest position and lowering them a little with each repetition.
• Remove any weeds, preferably before they seed.
• Remove any dead flowers from bushes and herbaceous plants, as well as any unwanted fruit.
• Cut any ugly looking perennials.
• Pull up any seasonal plants that are no longer decorative.
• Tie in any new shoots of climbing plants.