Winter fruit tree pruning

As well as the usual leaf clear up ( and there were more than ever!) it was time for some timely winter pruning of an old pear tree. This is an inherited tree growing in a less than ideal spot and we are preserving it purely because it plays host to a showstopper of a clematis. This is the only reason we are keeping it as, despite living at 'Pear' Tree Cottage; pears are not a big favourite in our household.  It was of course Chris untangling the clematis from the tangle of twigs and branches from the top of the ladder.  The trouble with most fruit trees is that everything snags and tangles making the brash such a pain to deal with.  Anyway, we couldn't complain as the weather was clear and sunny despite the very soggy ground conditions!  We weren't the only ones hard at work on a Saturday either as Bulmers were lugging their apple harvest in the adjacent orchard.

A Reminder of Summer.

Back in the summer we had a group of artists from various WI groups in the county.  One of the ladies was very kind and has sent me this watercolour she did looking through the green doors and beyond to the greenhouse path.  I think I shall hang it over my desk in the Pear Hut (which is more like a writing room but such a name sounds a tad pretentious!)  It's only right that it should be hung in the garden!  A big thank you to Janet Pearce of Bewdley, Worcestershire.

Last word on colour - promise!

I promise not to mention colour again..............BUT, these untouched photos were both taken on a dark, dank, damp November day.  See what I mean about beacons in the garden???

'This week, Oi 'ave bin mostly..................'

The Raspberry Patch

...........muck spreading!!  Yes really.  A lovely neighbour who farms up the lane brought us a bucket load - that is, a tractor sized bucket!  This is the real deal - well rotted farm yard manure.  Chris and I barrowed it around the garden and shared it out between the roses, raspberries, Beech hedge and, of course the veg patch.  Our muck fork doesn't usually get a lot of use but yesterday made up for that.  It's quite a smug feeling to know that all that goodness is ready in situ for next year.  I promise I only put down my fork to take a couple of piccies!

The Veg Patch

All Bark and Plenty of Bite!

Acer griseum

Inherited common Birch - probably a Betula Pendula or Pubescens

Prunus Serrula

It's not just the leaves that are full of colour!  Check out the paper bark maple (Acer Griseum) and the Birches.  I know!  Here she goes again but all summer long this fab bark has been hidden by the leaf canopies and suddenly all these naked forms are being revealed fro winter!  When these have lost their remaining leaves, the bark will stand out even more. This is exactly what's needed on a dark winter's day.  Despite all the hard work devoted to leaf clearing, it's worth every minute.  Some of these trees are uplit at night and they look more spectacular in winter than in summer.  I find that surprising as I imagined that in summer when there's a lot of leaf surface from which the light can bounce, they would carry more impact.  Not so.  The skeletal forms of winter are far more striking - especially in snow!

Beacon in the Garden!

I know I keep banging on about colour but we Brits associate November with darkness, wet, fog and general greyness!!  We don't associate this month with the sort of colour that abounds right now.  We have one Acer that sits pretty much in the middle of the garden totally exposed to winds and sun and I don't think it's meant to be this happy!!  Most Acers prefer dappled shade and a modicum of shelter from wind.  Right now this one is the jewel in the crown and its colour is startling from every other point in the garden.  Even from the kitchen it's like a giant glowing lamp! When the sun shines, its nothing short of dazzling and on the darkest day it's like a big warm beacon.  As if that wasn't good enough - to think that when it drops all its leaves, we get to compost them all!  Oh, and in case you're wondering: it's an Acer palmatum dissectum Seiryu and it moved here in a pot from my last garden!

Automatic Greenhouse Shading off for the Winter!

Now that the automatic greenhouse shading has done its job for the summer and the vine has now conveniently dropped all its leaves, these plants are being allowed maximum light during the darkest time of the year.  It has to be the easiest and most conveniently natural way to provide shade in a greenhouse.  Easier even than flicking a switch!  Oh and did I mention zero cost?  This greenhouse is not 'heated' as such but the heater thermostat is set to keep the temperature just above freezing - which is fine for these plants which are just being grown for a little winter colour and fragrance.

Just 2 hyacinths have filled the air with their perfume but actually the little Cyclamens have their own much softer perfume as does the yellow Primula.  None of the other coloured Primulas have any perfume at all.  There are bulbs in the larger terracotta pots - not planted as early as I'd have liked!  Hopefully, they'll follow on and provide a little continuity.