So Long Summer - Hello September


September already, whew! I am going to try getting back to a weekly round up post, no promises, but I will try. Things are easing up work wise at the nursery now, so I can take things a little easier as we head towards closing for winter and a very well earned break for both of us. I've got a bad cold at the moment which is making me feel even more exhausted, I'm rarely ill so even more annoying! My back is getting painful again and my neck is not happy either! Oh dear my body really is telling me to ease up! Other than that things are good, busy, but good.

cafe flowers
This week's cafe flowers have a touch of autumn about them
 with the ears of corn and the yellow Rudbeckias

A couple of mornings this past week (when it hasn't been raining) there's that particular cool air that says autumn to me, which is fine as I love Autumn, especially September. The weather has been really mixed lately with warm wet days or dry sunny hot days. It's lovely to see the sun and it brings out the butterflies too, there's been very few this year.

autumn skies
Lots of mixed weather at the moment

Now that all the wedding stuff is out the way, I've caught up at home, tidied away everything, dealt with a build up of paperwork and stuff that needs done, life at home is a bit more relaxed and I can start doing bits and pieces around the house and garden making an attempt to reduce the book pile on my desk and do some proper cooking. I'm still working my way (slowly) through my Outlander Cookbook and one of the Ottolenghi books I got for my Christmas last year! Once I'm off over winter I'll have time to tackle some of the more complicated recipes.

Ingredients for Roast chicken with rice salad,  Ottoenghi
Ingredients for Roast chicken with rice salad,
Ottoenghi

Ingredients for Roast chicken with rice salad,  Ottoenghi
Roast chicken with rice salad, Ottoenghi

The gardens in the nursery continue to provide lots of colour and food for insects. Our customers are really enjoying wandering around the new gardens and are getting quite inspired with all our ideas of what can be grown here in our exposed, cold, windy clay soiled nursery. The gardens are definitely late summer into autumn gardens and look particularly good in August and September. I'm really enjoying seeing our hard work come together and seeing people enjoy the gardens. Why not come and visit and enjoy them for yourself, we're open Wednesday to Sunday, 10am to 5pm.

scented garden
A place to sit and enjoy the sun and the fragrance of the scented garden

herb garden
Looking along the herb garden

Nigella damascena
I love Nigella or Love in a Mist, and it's featured alot this year
 in the gardens and our wedding

WFGA visit to Quercus
The WFGA visit
We've been expanding on visits from groups and hope to do more walk and talks around the nursery. I spent a couple of hours last Saturday doing a walk and talk around the nursery and gardens with a group from WFGA - Womens Farm & Garden Association, talking about my career in horticulture (all 31 years of it!) about the nursery and gardens and about horticulture in general. We had lots of interesting questions and every one had a great morning, yeh! They then enjoyed lunch at Whitmuir the Organic Place. 

Emptying the moth trap
Emptying the moth trap

On Sunday there we hosted a biological recording visit from TWIC (The Wildlife Information Centre). Reuben had set up several moth traps over night which were then emptied and the moths examined by everyone this morning. David then took everyone around the farm and nursery where the group were able to record all sorts of bugs and beasties. 

At last a decent sunset
At last a decent sunset

The tree in the field behind the house
Sun and stormy skies over the field behind the house

It's been good to get back to two days off after a manic spring and summer and get my Monday catch up days back, the house and garden are almost back under control, ha ha. I spent a couple of hours tidying up the patio outside the back door. Putting stuff away, sweeping up, cutting back some messy perennials and so on. It will soon be covered in leaves as autumn progresses but at least for now it looks better than it did. I removed all the wild strawberries from the fruit planter (they were over taking everything) and split up the Strawberry 'Cambridge Favourite' that was also in there. The wild strawberries were potted into a large pot where they can do their own thing without misbehaving.

On Tuesday we headed to Culross in Fife across the new Queensferry Crossing bridge, it's a striking bridge, that's for sure. We enjoyed a walk around Culross, some lunch and then meandered back home, more of that in another blog.

I hope you are looking forward to Autumn too. Have a great weekend.

Queensferry crossing bridge
Crossing the new bridge






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