Autumn Miscellany

Next to Spring, I love this time of year and I think our garden is looking prettier now than it's ever done. Sorry I haven't been around much for the past week or so, but I've just started yet another course with the Open University so I've been rather distracted. I've got a lot of reading up and commenting to do on everyone's blogs! Anyway, here are some photographs I was inspired to take today.

As other flowers are settling down for their Winter sleep ahead, the fuchsias are really coming into their own. This is Fuchsia 'Deep Purple'. For those of you who love huge showy blooms, this is the one! It flowers profusely and the double flowers really are the deepest of purple. Although I prefer the single-flowered fuchsias, I have to admit that 'Deep Purple' is a stunner. You can't go far wrong with fuchsias...... they're great value for money. Being inexpensive plants, they have a long flowering season and are amongst the easiest of plants to propagate from cuttings. There's a fuchsia for every situation in the garden..... you can grow them in the border, in hanging baskets and containers, there are shrub fuchsias and miniature fuchsias, double-flowered fuchsias and single-flowered fuchsias. The only fuchsia that's not available yet is a YELLOW one and if you happen to accidentally breed one, your life is about to change big style!

Our garden is a carpet of golden leaves just now, compliments of the Field Maple. If you look closely you'll see a tiny bloom of Herb Robert at the base of the tree stump.

Another fuchsia! This is Fuchsia 'Tom Thumb'. It's flowered non-stop throughout the Summer and still going strong. The photograph doesn't do it justice though, as it's tiny blooms are a richer purple. The plant itself only grows to about 8 inches high, but is the perfect choice to give shelter to the fairies.

This is a Rowan tree (Mountain Ash) that I've been training as a bonsai. It's in the same pot as the Tom Thumb fuchsia. When I say 'training', all I did was to confine it to a small flower-pot for a couple of years until I planted it in this container. Lucky for me, the trunk and roots took on this beautifully contorted shape and it looks quite authentic.

This last photo is just to show you what a beautiful corner of the Earth I live in. :D I took it today after my dental appointment, which was in the town next to ours. This is taken from the car park looking over towards our town, but it was drizzling with rain so you can't see it! In the middle of the photo you can just see the River Wear. Click on it to enlarge.

p.s. My teeth were fine and didn't need any treatment. :D