End of Month Review - October

"From ghoulies and ghosties and long-leggety beasties
And things that go bump in the night,
Good Lord, deliver us!" (A Cornish Litany - anonymous)

It is the last day of October and the day before All Saints Day or Hallowe'en as it is known in this corner of the world.  This poem was written on a small wooden plaque that hung in my parents' kitchen for much of the time I was growing up, it was a souvenir from one of our many cornish holidays and whilst its senitiment was not something that means anything to me, I still think of it this time of year.
The leaves are turning.  At this time of year I always think I should have more maples.
I have three hamamelis, this is the last one to lose its leaves.  The others turn a more flame/orange but this is a beautiful yellow.  Not much more than a twig at the moment, but it is growing and thriving and it will get larger.
The Medlar 'Nottingham' is ablaze with colour.  This is a wonderful tree, beautiful large blossom from the first year I planted it, it fruits well and then the leaves turn so prettily.  A great all-rounder.
The borders are now past the turning point for the season.  There is still some colour, but the brown punctuation points of the echinacea are now coming into their own and the grasses are starting to go golden.
The last few flowers are just hanging on until we get the first frost.  We had a threat of frost this month, but it has not really struck yet.  The dahlias are still flowering though I have stopped deadheading them in the hope that I might get some seed from some of them.
The new extension to the pond border is looking rather sparse.  The wallflowers are in and I am waiting for my rose order to arrive.  I have also planted some bulbs in here, various tulips, alliums and the odd daff.
These persicaria orientalis remain one of my favourite plants this year.  Grown from seed these are an annual, they are over 6 foot tall.  I am hoping to be able to collect seed from them so that I can grow them again next year. 
This is my row of pleached hornbeams.  You will notice they are not pleached.  They have been in situ for just over a year now and so next year I intend to make a start at pleaching them.  I am nothing if not ambitious!
The prairie borders still look a bit bare too - but the stipa has taken quite well and I have a greenhouse full of it.
I am not intending to put these out though until the Spring.  They are very small and I want to get them a little bigger before letting them out into the wild.
I also have a lot of cuttings in the greenhouse and some seeds.  Most of these will have to come into the conservatory when it gets really cold.  I really need to get a heater for the greenhouse.
The eucomis leaf cuttings are looking ok.  Not doing anything visible but they seem ok.
I've been clearing the parrot weed out of the pond.  It looks a bit better now, I think I am going to really struggle to get all the blasted stuff out though.  The pond, whilst still very low, is slightly higher than it was due to some very welcome rain this week.

So its been quite a good month, I reason that its meant to look a bit untidy and a bit straggly this time of year so I feel quite relaxed about it. 

Thanks as ever to Helen, the Patient Gardener for hosting this meme.

Comments

  1. Your extension to the pond border will look great in flower next year. I also am horribly impressed by your activity and full greenhouse. I've sort of run out of steam and am doing the minimum...

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  2. You are quite correct it is time to allow the garden time to rest, and you are making such good use of your greenhouse. I look forward to seeing the developments in your pond as time goes on. alistair

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  3. I bought ny first Hamamelis earlier this year and am very pleased with the foliage colour. I am very impressed with the contents of your greenhouse. I am always behind with the seed sowing and taking cuttings.
    Ponds and encroaching plants seem to go together :-)

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  4. Goodness, your greenhouse puts mine to shame, I have been useless at getting cuttings going this year. Good luck clearing the pond, pernicious weed can be so disheartening.

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  5. You have been busy so much happening and I love all your bags of cuttings - I am beginning to get some bags too!

    Thanks for joining in any this month

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  6. Thanks for all the comments - this is the first year I have had such a full greenhouse at this time, I am just hoping I can keep it all alive through the winter! I am so excited about the cuttings, I've been having propagation frenzy this year!

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  7. You're right, the garden should look a bit tired and a bit messy in autumn,after all the frantic activity and heat of summer. Like us after a long, hot day of gardening, it just wants to flop around a bit and catch its breath.Your autumn garden has a great end-of-season feel to it.

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  8. Your greenhouse contents put mine to shame :( You have certainly been industrious. Love the colour of the medlar leaves - have been debating whether I might squeeze one in at the allotment. Enjoyed your end of month view.

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  9. Anna - medlars are great trees - mine fruited in it's first year and medlar jelly is just amazing, they also look pretty most of the year.

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  10. I love hamamellis too but I only have two. The sight of your greenhouse is making me glad that I don't include a picture of mine in my end of month views. It is a total mess! Yours looks fabulously well organised.

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