No
warmth, no cheerfulness, no helpful ease,
No
comfortable feel in any member
No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,
No
fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds – November!
Thomas Hood
 |
| When north winds do blow... |
Madness! With a covering of
snow at the end of October, albeit fleetingly, and now on this morning, 2nd
November – All Soul’s Day, the day set
aside by the church for praying for souls in purgatory – hailstones bouncing
off the ground outside the French windows.
The clocks have gone back and
the luxury of that extra hour in bed is almost forgotten as we head towards the
dark days before Christmas. Many
dread the dark nights and prefer to virtually hibernate until the days begin to
lengthen. No longer having to turn out on frosty mornings or de-ice the car
before leaving work for home, I can take advantage and appreciate the charm of
the shortening days.
 |
| Autumn leaves |
There is still much to see and
enjoy in the autumn garden and the leaf colour has been a joy. I’ve refrained
from cutting back many perennial plants to aid wildlife cope with the
deprivations of the winter garden but have been using some of the startling red
stems of euphorbia fireglow and solidago for example as foliage for
autumn flower arrangements. A few stems of honesty, aided and abetted by
Chinese lanterns - courtesy of friend
Brenda - need very few flowers to
produce a pleasing splash of colour in the home. (Witness previous pumpkin
arrangement).
 |
| Autumn colour in Auckland Castle park |
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