NOVEMBERING ON

The last leaves are falling, gathering in drifts by the door and on the paths.

I have cleared under the magnolia and must top dress with manure and compost. Three requests have been potted up - well one request of three plants - erigeron, white Japanese anemone and a tall white Michaelmas daisy - for L and G and their new garden.

On the banking the three hen pheasants traipse by, the two cock pheasants facing off and scrapping, full of male hormones no doubt. One cock parading back and forth in front of the pond. These birds are so exotic, not at all British - well they are now after being introduced - just so they can be shot, not here.

To the story of the Sarah Raven sweet peas, duly sown and not germinated - well two have. I took a pot and searched for the seeds and found nothing so - ?mice, ?duds. R says I should email them with a pic of the flop. Perhaps I will. 

 

Just when I thought we had escaped a mole invasion this appeared on the top banking. Just one - the soil is a bit thin up there. I will wait and see how this develops before calling in the catcher. I feel guilty about catching them but when there are several long lines of molehills across the grass . . . 

 

We are well strimmed now - and the upper woodland edge looks much better -

 

as does the stream. The gardener wondered about doing the Royal fern but I like its autumn colours so it stays for now.

One consequence of all this activity is that the primrose leaves have been revealed and when the daffodils and snowdrops come they will not be swamped by undergrowth.
 
It is November and dark and wet and pretty miserable. In the spring when we had "lockup" the weather was glorious - not so now - days not to get out of bed for. Anyway my little Sony camera has gone on the blink so may need to go away for service and repairs.

This year one of the last things to lose its leaves in the garden is the hazel - booth in the bottom hedge and where they have self sown on the bankings.

We still have fruit, well one - a lonely pear.

 

And if one looks carefully there are yet a few delights - the white honesty seedheads backlit.

 

A wimp day - walk Bouth Woods then home. After lunch - "I will go out in the garden" - open door, starts raining, shut door.

And I still have a box of white camassias to put in somewhere.

So I spend all of two minutes checking the houseplants for water etc - except the dried heads of the hydrangea of course.