Reasons to be Cheerful
Whoa! Autumn has certainly made an entrance! And bang on meteorological Day One. One minute, there you are, pottering about in your t-shirt, sun on your back, and the next thing you know, rain is pouring out of a leaden sky, winds are whipping through the trees and it’s getting dark at six o’clock.
I’m not ready for it this year, at all; it’s crept up behind me and gone Boo! But there it is. So, it’s time to invoke the serenity prayer, Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, and Wisdom to know the difference.
After a brief period of morbid introspection - another summer gone, another year older – I realise that there are distinct advantages to September. No more watering the borders for a start! During the droughts I was a slave to the hose. Didn’t dare to go away for more than a couple of nights in case everything died. A trip to the nursery to buy spring bulbs, with tea and cake to celebrate afterwards, has become an autumn tradition. So much colour, such promise, it’s easy to get carried away.
I never specifically designed the garden to reach its peak at this time of year, I just kept buying more and more plants until the borders were full to bursting by late summer! But, as a result, it gives me joy and lifts my spirits, bang on target! After all, it’s a long old winter ahead. The borders pretty much take care of themselves now, the planting so dense that the tall perennials support each other against the elements. And if any do succumb to the forces of nature, it doesn’t matter, it’s the end of the season, and broken stems can be turned into cuttings.
I just love the way the slanting light bathes the borders in gold. Contrasting foliage comes into its own now. Yellow jasmine Fiona’s Sunrise, burgundy berberis, lime green euphorbia, chocolate pittosporum Tom Thumb, shine like beacons beneath the brooding sky.
And when it’s just too inhospitable to be outside, the greenhouse becomes a cosy hidey-hole, where I can lose myself for hours, doing small, mundane tasks such as labelling cuttings and potting on seedlings.
But there’s nothing quite like being confined to barracks on a dreary, wet afternoon, with a good book, a cat or two on my knee, and a clear conscience.
Love, Caroline x
PS. Saturday 6th Sept London group of Plant Heritage Autumn Plant Fair at St Michael's C of E primary school, North Road, Highgate N6 4BJ. Gate opens at 9.30am, closing around 2pm, entry £2.50.