The glorious month of September. Full of fruit, golden leaves and bright berries. How quickly the year has flown and here we are again into the last quarter. Much to enjoy though before Winter sets in.
The hawthorn trees are ablaze with scarlet berries and so are the Cotoneasters. Black berries are on the Hypericum and another large bush I don’t know the name of. Leaves are beginning to turn and seedheads are abundant on the Marigolds. Two fat rosehips missed my deadheading on the yellow rose. Tiny cones look pleasing on our huge conifers. These never turn into the large cones familiar on Fir trees. Bluetits eat their seeds and in Spring sometimes we see a great puff of pollen released into the air. Fascinating!
A few figs look promising and the apples are falling and ready to pick. Most of the apples are very high now and difficult to reach but if they fall I can still use them if I remove them quickly from the ground.
I love having an abundance of cooking apples. They may be a variety called Bramley but the trees were planted long before we lived here so I can’t be sure. I do know that they have a delicious flavour and they’re so versatile. I have mentioned before, but worth saying again, that it’s easier and more effective when preparing apples to slice them into salted water. No need for lemons. The apples don’t taste salty and it prevents them from turning brown. Roughly a tablespoon of table salt swished around in a bowl of water is enough. If they’re drained and not rinsed before freezing, they won’t brown when they’re thawed. So many ways to use cooking apples.
I add some slices when I make jam because they’re rich in pectin which helps jam to set. I often stew them, stir in sugar and eat them with vanilla ice-cream or Greek yoghurt. Stewed apple is also good as apple sauce to go with pork or chicken, especially if it’s served with sage and onion stuffing. I use them in my Apple and Cinnamon Squares or my Apple Pobs Pudding. Both recipes are in my Earthy Homemaker’s Cookbook. I don’t often bake apple pies now but they are really tasty cooked this way and of course good in crumbles. One of my favourite ways is to wash and core the apples, keeping the skin intact then placing in a foil wrap with the centre of the apple filled with sugar and sultanas. Baked for about 20 to 25 minutes in a moderately hot oven or in the airfryer they are truly scrumptious.
Despite the intense heat of previous weeks and the dry earth beneath the trees my lovely Colchicums have emerged in all their delicate beauty.
These are unusual plants. Their tall fleshy leaves come up in Spring and die back. The naked flowers come up in late Summer or early Autumn. As lovely as they are their delicate stems flop easily and they quickly become damaged if they lie on wet soil. Still a wonderful sight to behold as they emerge each year.
In one of the polytunnels I planted two spare “Roma”tomatoes. I left these to get on with it. I didn’t support them or remove any sideshoots so they sprawled over the tunnel border. The crop has been generous and proved to me that tomatoes don’t need to have sunlight on them to make them turn red. The fruit shaded by the stems and leaves have ripened just as easily as the ones exposed to the light.
Two little frogs have been foraging under these tomato plants. How they find their way into the tunnel is a mystery as the door is usually kept closed. One peeped out as I harvested.
No need to remove leaves on tomatoes. In fact, it’s not a good idea because the leaves feed the plants and produce the fruit. I have had lots of lovely tomatoes and have skinned and frozen several portions for winter meals.
“Roma” tomatoes are easy to peel but it’s even easier if I place them in a bowl and cover them with boiling water. After a couple of minutes and after cooling in cold water, the skins just come away with no effort at all. Of course, they can be frozen with skins intact if it’s preferred or for speed.
Not many flowers in the garden at the moment but a few lovelies caught my eye.
I had some free Fuchsia plants when we last visited a local nursery. They were free because they were unsold and languishing in small pots after the bedding plant season had more or less ended. I thought I could probably revive them and I’m pleased to see they’re budding well and beginning to flower.
A pale mauve Iberis is beautiful and the pale pink or magenta Cyclamen hederifolium are sending up a flower here and there. A few pure white ones shine out beneath the shady trees. I wish they would spread but our soil is too dry for that.
These delicate petals are a contrast to the bold daisies of the Leucanthemum and the sunflowers. The fresh white of the Leucanthemum lightens the garden and they attract the bees. The sunflowers were supposed to be red but for some reason have a cheerful yellow halo. Still a pleasure to see. I love Rudbeckias and although some have faded away over the last two years my new ones are a delight to the eye even on a dull day.
Sadly, I discovered the Allium Leaf Miner had found the leeks. Despite the protection of the tunnel the little pests have found their way in and the leeks have tiny grubs ruining the edible part. Gardening is always a gamble! I prefer to grow organically and will not use pesticides so I will have to give extra protection or give up on growing leeks. Plenty of other vegetables to enjoy.
The rain has kept me mostly indoors so I’ve been knitting and taking photos of some of my favourite things. I have a lovely glass bottle, presumably for perfume but I have it to admire rather than use. I found it years ago in a charity shop for £1.99. It’s beautiful and has the maker’s initials scratched into the base. I haven’t been able to find out who made it but they were very skilled.
And finally, here’s a painting I did a few years ago of a spot beside a small lake at a favourite holiday haunt. This was painted with acrylic paints from my photo of the scene.
I hope you look forward to Autumn’s pleasures and enjoy the changing season. With you again in two weeks. Bye for now.
Living a contented creative life. 