Autumn Glory

It's autumn again, a stunning time of year as the colours of nature transform to golds, browns, russets, reds and yellows. A signal of change and that winter is coming, but a time of beauty before the days grow shorter and the long dark nights set in. A time for enjoyment, peace and tranquility before the mad rush of Christmas begins. 

It's lovely to watch the leaves flutter down from the trees in the breeze and to be able to kick and crunch through banks of colourful leaves already on the ground. The apples are ready and ripe for picking and making into chutneys and sauces. There's still an odd day when it's mild and sunny -remnants of summer before the first heavy frosts and storms begin. 

Autumn Flowers

It's October, but gardens are still alive and thriving with so many flowers.

I've been pleasantly surprised with the lovely hazy sunshine and mild weather we've been having and it's been lovely to still be enjoying the late summer flowers in the garden - it almost looks like it is still summer if it wasn't for the golden and red leaves turning the trees into that glorious autumnal colour.

There are still roses flowering and giving off their beautiful scents in the October breeze. I always enjoy seeing the verbenas swaying - even when they've passed their best of flowering, they always seem to stand tall at this time of year and add so much colour and depth to the borders.

I love seeing the hydrangeas, they are a strong and colourful plant during July and August and in autumn their flowers still look gorgeous as their colours fade and their lacy caps become tinged with shades of gold and creams. Again, they contribute so much to the beauty of the garden in autumn.

We also have so many salvias and wallflowers too, still bursting full of flowers - they've been flowering since early spring and are still going strong as we head towards the winter months. Cotoneasters full of red berries tipple over walls and rocks and of course the apple tree is laden with apples ready for picking and cooking. Bright pink sedums are always a favourite of mine at this time too - they never fail to liven up dull corners and spots around the borders.

My favourite of all at this time of year has to be the michaelmas daisy, as their delicate purple and yellow heads rise high towards to the late warm sunshine. One of our back garden borders has burst back into full bloom and they're looking stunning.

And, of course, there's still the last of those summer bedding plants - geraniums and begonias especially, squeezing the best of the milder weather before the frosts begin. It's soon going to be time to tidy up and redo the pots and baskets with winter bedding.

Roses at Wrest Park

Autumn rose