Putting The Garden To Bed

Although cold, Wednesday dawned bright and sunny making me think back over the time I've been helping Diana and Brian with their garden, we have been very lucky with the weather. I can only recall two Wednesdays that have been wet since I started back in April, not bad going really but I suspect that wont be the case for much longer. Anyway we continued with general tidying up, what I call putting the garden to bed, composting the last rather tatty carrots, pulling up the runner beans and courgette plants and giving the raised beds a really good tidy. Diana pruned the blackberry and then we both trimmed the Lonicera hedge. From now on our efforts will be concentrated on rejuvenating the ornamental borders and winter pruning in the orchard. I must just mention a most amazing tree I encountered at Harlow on Tuesday, the Katsura tree Cercidiphyllum japonicum, superb autumn colour and the decaying foliage smells just like burnt toffee, yes really! Very apt for the run up to bonfire night.

"No spring nor summer beauty hath such grace as I have seen in one autumnal face"
John Donne