Here we are at the end of October, which has ended with a combination of heavy rain followed by sunny moments. It is still fairly mild but as I write I look at the temperatures for the week ahead and it looks like frost is possible.
In the front garden the Magnolia has its flower buds forming ready for Spring. This is one of those signs of hope of the season turning that I always enjoy as Winter runs towards us.
The front garden looks ok at the moment though I remain not hugely happy with it. I think I have said previously sometimes I wish I had just left it as a lawn as whilst it was boring, I wouldn't feel so obliged to do something with it all the time. I know I am waiting for the Box hedging to get blight as this will force my hand.
Around the side of the how the living wall PlantBox I was given to trial earlier in the year is entering its next phase.
I have planted some Winter Bedding into it as I spent the Summer loving seeing the petunias and nicotiana flowering so well in it. It added some colour to where I do not usually have planting that was very welcome.
As proof of the mildness of the weather, I still have the odd sweetpea in flower. I love it when I can keep them flowering until the first frost. Successional sowing works well for me.
You can see from the shadows it is mid-afternoon when I was taking these photographs. There had been a morning of torrential rain and then the sun appeared. The sedums continue to add colour and structure this time of year. They really are such a good plant.
The Courtyard Garden is looking a bit depleted as the more tender plants have been moved indoors. The potted Dicksonia antarctica will soon move indoors as well. The larger ones planted in the ground will have their crowns stuffed when the frosts arrive, but these baby potted ones that have no truck to speak of yet will need a bit more care than that.
I don't think I have shown the fernery recently, after a very dry summer it is now loving the rain. It is a dark, difficult corner of the garden and the ferns have worked well here.
The Prairie Borders are entering their Winter state where the grasses waft blondley and the echinops stand stall providing great hibernation places for insects.
It has been a good year for ladybirds and they do need lots of good places to sleep away the Winter.
In the Accidental Shrubbery the hydrangeas are still hanging on to their mop-heads. Despite the dry Summer they have done well this year. They needed less watering than last year which is a sign they are rooting in well.
This is the Hydrangea petiolaris, a climbing hydrangea. I have tried to grow this plant several times to no avail. Then I read somewhere that you can grown them as a sort of domed shrub, so I thought I would give this a try. The reason for showing you this is that I have kept this one alive for more than one year. This I have never achieved before, so I now have hope.
and I like hope. I like seeing this cyclamen leaves dotting around in the garden as they are now self-seeding themselves around (well, actually ants are doing the moving the seeds around).
This is Althea cannabina flowering in the Coal Bunker border. I grew the original plant from seed as it is not one I see on sale very often, yet this is a real shame. I love this plant, it is tall and wafty and flowers for weeks and weeks.
It plays nicely in the border as it grows upwards giving height, but not too big a footprint below. I have divided the original plant a few times now. It is a plant I need more of.
As I walked around I realised how tall the Carol Klein acer has become. it was about 4ft tall when it was first planted into the garden and now I think it is around 7 ft tall. What a great tree it is.
and it is time for Edgeworthia Watch to commence, my usual fretting over whether it will get through the Winter this time. The buds are forming well for next Spring and it is now a well established shrub. I sort of think it should be ok, but....
I stood for a moment here, looking at the curve of the lawn that I always like. During the Winter this becomes more distinct and I do think it was one of my better ideas.
I end, as always, on the pond. It is filling up nicely from the rain and the removal of some of the Carex pendula has been a very good idea. The rest has to go! There is a lot to be getting on with this Autumn/Winter, I feel the garden has run away from me in some places, so I shall keep you updated as to progress.
