Autumn merges into winter this week in the garden and brighter days are busy with the last of the harvests and preparing for colder weather.
Warmer weather in early October resulted in the trees retaining leaves for longer and the Autumn colours are amazing.
Migrating Geese are in great number and can be heard daily heading to their winter habitats.
Harvest in
This is the first year that all tomatoes have ripened, even the blight resistant varieties that were grown outdoors.
Pumpkins, squashes and crab apples are all gathered in. Pumpkins look great in autumnal arrangements and displays, then destined for soups and stews.
Roasting pumpkin seeds is lovely ways to use up the masses of seeds that pumpkins produce and the crab apples are juiced with the windfall eating apples to make some seasonal mulled apple juice.
Hawthorn berries are the largest I have seen for many years, resulting in a considerable harvest. There will be plenty for tinctures, teas and sauces.
Overwintering Dahlias
The north of England has already seen a few frosty mornings, so the Dahlia tubers had to be lifted and stored for next year.
It is always an unpopular task because they are still flowering avidly after the recent warm spells in mid October, providing a late nectar source for the bees.
Seeds and herbs
In dry, dark areas, there are many bunches of flowers and herbs hanging to dry for later displays and to save seed for next year.
Saving your own seed is not only more economical but seed raised in a local region often results in plants that are tolerant of regional weather variances.
Some of the nettle patch was cut back to create new growth for the last of the nettle tea harvest.
Autumn planting
Garlic cloves, tulips and spring flowering bulbs are planted and the last of the autumn pruning carried out.
Cuttings of fruit bushes and other perennials raised over the summer are still too young to brave the worst of the winter weather, so they will be kept in the cold greenhouse until spring.
Cosying the home
I love readying the home for winter. Throws and soft furnishings in warm Autumnal colours now grace the sofas and chairs.
Hanging the heavier curtains with thermal linings give a real cosy feel to rooms as well as helping to keep the warmth in and the cold out.
Decorating the rooms with dried and seasonal flower arrangements and adding a few candles and scented diffusers complete the setting.