The trees have been an absolute picture driving through the country lanes near my house but since the heavy rain most have fallen to make a colourful carpet on the ground and with this in mind, it’s leaf collecting time again. Before the grass is too wet I use my lawn mower set on high for this task.  It’s good to use the mower because it cuts the leaves up into tiny pieces, which in turn speeds up the composting process.  I have special bins for the leaves made from chicken wire with stakes at the four corners.  Once the grass is too soggy I like to use my rake.  This is not only a very satisfying task on a crisp Autumn day but great exercise as well.  I must confess to hating the noise of all those leaf blowers, such an intrusion into your thoughts as you clear the garden.

I am in the process of moving all of my pelargonium’s and fuchsias into my potting shed.  The problem being that over the last few months I have let it become very messy!!  I will have to give it a sort out and then the moving can start. I cut the plants down by half and clean up any decaying leaves.  I need to make space for the dahlias as well.

For these I take the tubers out of the pots and leave in a tray upside down.   I then sprinkle with yellow sulphur, then cover with dry compost and leave in a dry, dark frost free place until the spring.

I have spent the odd dry day wandering around my garden, secateurs in hand, sniping and tidying the borders.

I also thought it would be a good idea to prune the roses that have a lot of fresh growth to prevent wind rock. In the vegetable garden I have cleared away any fallen leaves and weeds and harvested all the crops that will spoil in the very cold weather. I have covered the last of the salad with cloches to see if I can get it to over winter again.  Fingers crossed it will or I could always sow some on the window sill.