22nd September 2024

Welcome

Now the nights are drawing in we begin to think about storing and preserving the garden harvests and preparing plants for the cold weather ahead.

In the Vegetable Garden we are still picking Beetroot, Carrots, Chard, Courgettes and Kale. Butternut squash are being lifted off the ground, Asparagus is allowed to turn brown before cutting down and Sweet Peas are being left to harvest the seeds. We have crushed a lot of Apples for Apple Juice and Apples and Pears are either stored or frozen.

Tomatoes are still cropping well both in pots outside and in the Greenhouse where Peppers are ripening on the benches. Orchids are now put into the Greenhouse after their summer spent outside along with the Geraniums removed from the Urns.

Our Water Lilies have all come from a friend’s small pond and they have multiplied to such an extent that next Spring we will need to think about thinning them out.

Dierma along the edge of the Moat in the Daffodil area are being tidied up and new plants replace the wild species which have outgrown their site.

The Autumn Border still need a little more sun to open its Asters but do look at the Hydrangea Petiolaris climbing up the tree at the front of the border.

The Kaffir Lily or Schizosytlis are in flower in the Water Garden and Toad Lilies line the ditch, whilst Hydrangea are enjoying the shade of this area.

Nerines are opening in the bed along the wall at the front of the hall and the purple small shrub in the east lawn shrubbery is Clematis Wyvale. Please keep behind the rope on the East Lawn where the white Colchicum are just peeping up through the grass.

There is still a lot of colour in the West Lawn beds and Oleander are flowering in the pots and Geranium and Verbena Bonariensis in the gravel.

Passion Flower are in bloom along the Wall at the back of the West Lawn and the tall plants infront are Ginger.

We still have House Martins, Little Grebe, Moorhens, Pheasant, Partridge, Sparrow Hawk, Tawney Owl, Corncrake, and Wood Pigeon. 3 Cormorants and 1 Heron patrol the Moat and we have lots of Squirrels and Rabbits. The sheep have been mowing the Car Park and they will be moved back to fresh grass in the Water Meadow.

Stay healthy and good gardening

Lynda Tucker