My favourite time of year has arrived!
Autumn has always been my favourite time, and this year the colours in the garden are absolutely stunning. There are still asters, dahlias and chrysanthemums flowering but the stars in the garden at the moment are trees and shrubs. There are several acers, most of which are unnamed seedlings bought from Westonbirt Arboretum over the years. one in particular is a lovely deep red. Dogwoods in the orchard have deep red leaves to match their red stems, a Prunus incisa ‘Kojo-no-mai’ is all shades of red, green and gold and in complete contrast, the Liquidamber is starting to turn a buttery yellow. In the hedge surrounding the orchard, berries on a hawthorn tree and seedpods of Euonymus europaeus are providing a splash of colour. We’re still working hard pruning and taking out overgrown shrubs. Latest to be removed is an enormous privet that seemed to get bigger as the job progressed! Cutting the branches off wasn’t too difficult, especially from my vantage point a safe distance from the chainsaw, but digging out the stumps took hours. Two out of the three stumps have been taken out but the final one defeated us, so it’s been cut down as low as possible. The rambling roses on the pergola have grown too well and were taking over surrounding shrubs. With hindsight, too many were planted in a relatively small area. Drastic action was required so they have been pruned with the hedge trimmer. It really was the only way and I am sure they will be fine. An easier job was planting garlic. This time I’m trying a hardneck variety, ‘Lautrec Wight’ as well as elephant garlic for the first time. Let’s hope the latter lives up to its name and produces some good-sized bulbs. I’ve been taking cuttings from my scented leaf pelargoniums and cutting back those grown in the greenhouse. The ones that spent summer outside in pots are now safe in the greenhouse to overwinter. It’s unheated, so I’ll have to protect all these plants with fleece as it becomes colder.
Tales from a Country Garden 