Moving the pots around the garden last month was a big success, we have had a few more roses but mostly the pots have added some interest, if not flowers, to our view while we’ve made full use of the garden sofa while we can. The succulents on the patio, and elsewhere in the garden, have been the story of the garden this summer for me, and a new favourite that’s for sure. I’ve been adding to them, and they’ve been flowering and it’s been great to watch, though I have to find some winter homes for them all - about six or seven pots - in the garage, which is easily double what we had last year, oops.
At the start of the month some new garden furniture arrived - and sadly it’s remained unused and in the garage, which if you read my September update you’ll know that they’ve added to the challenges we’ve had sorting out the garage!
But they were too good a bargain to turn down, and we spent an afternoon ‘birthing’ them from their very large and heavy box. Everything was cable-tied together and the only way to get them out was to lay the box down and pull it out whole - it made us laugh though. The chairs needed a back plate screwing in place, and seven out of eight of the holes (across both chairs) were in the correct place. The final one needed a bit of persuasion, but we got there.
Ah yes, more succulents - enjoy.
We’ve been prepping the garden for the winter months, and this month that’s mostly meant trimming the lavender bushes. All eight of them. Which is a lot of trimming. I’m surprised though that I haven’t managed to take any pictures of them, and they’ve taken a few sessions to get through them all. Though when the garden bin collection happens next time I will have the sweetest smelling garden bin!
There’s other ways I’m noticing that the season is changing, we have many more spider webs in the garden and the daddy long legs are also making themselves at home. I’m ok with this one in the bay tree, much better than them spying on us through the windows!
One of my small roses is still flowering, and still has buds as well as the smallest rosehips. It’s sheltered by the mock orange and hebes which surround it, and so that’s perhaps why it’s still going strong.
Just along from the flowering rose is the pink fluffy smoke bush, which is fast becoming a favourite. We’ve a couple of dark leaved smoke bushes too, but this one in the inside border just makes me smile. I also need to cut the buddleia bush before the weather changes, but not yet as I’ve no space in the garden bin. The butterflies will be pleased by that I’m sure, though I’m spotting them in other parts of the garden too, still enjoying the sun.
Amongst the weeds, and corks, in the bay tree pot I spotted a cyclamen growing - I don’t think I’ve seen one in this pot before, and I was thinking we don’t have any in this garden yet. Well now I have one, but I think I’ll need to add some more at some point.
The rowan tree sums up autumn, the colours, the berries and I love the leaves too. We can see this tree from the house which is great, and while I won’t be doing anything with the berries - other than watch the blackbirds forage them - I do plan to do something with our crab apples this year.
There’s loads of crab apples this year - our little tree also got the mask year memo - and my plan is to make some chilli and/or herb crab apple jelly, though having read the recipe through properly I’ve now ordered a jelly strainer to make life easier - I’ll share how I get on when it arrives. Wish me luck!