Meteorologically with the advent of September we have moved from summer into autumn. I have noticed a few bloggers bemoaning the passing of summer but for me I am beginning to feel a sense of excitement at the prospect of the new season. Autumn and spring are my favorite seasons. They are seasons of change, of the passing from new to old and vice versa and suit my fidgety nature. I find winter and summer both increasingly boring and tedious, hating the extreme of weather and how limiting the cold and heat can be.
Cyclamen hederifolium
Even though the meteorological definition of autumn – September, October and November, is a paper exercise you can already sense the changes in the garden. It just smells different but one sure sign that autumn is coming is the flowering of the Cyclamen hederifolium which will flower now until early spring.
Changing leaves of the Prunus
I wonder what the impact of the dry season we have had will be on the autumn displays of changing leaves. Last year, after a very wet summer, the displays were especially good. I suspect that they will be over quicker this year and I have already noticed the large prunus in my garden leaves changing to a buttery yellow, earlier I am sure than other years. In fact it is normally the witch hazel that colours up first and that is only just turning. There are berries on the Sorbus and so far the blackbirds have resisted making an early start on this crop.
Changing leaves of Hamamelis mollis ‘Arnold Promise’
Unlike many I don’t see autumn as the end of the gardening year but as the start of the gardening year. I have placed bulb orders and expect parcels to start arriving shortly. The greenhouse is being tided ready for the succulents to be moved into their winter home. Plans formulated over the summer whilst considering the borders will be put into action and the sense of frustration of having to wait will hopefully pass. I plant a lot in autumn as I believe it gives many plants a good start ready for spring but I only plant out plants that are substantial so they have a chance, any one year old perennial seedlings will be kept undercover to be repotted during the winter and then planted out in the spring.
For me there is now a buzz in the air and a new sense of purpose.
