Joys of Autumn

Yes, at certain times of the day.

Wonderful soop, and do they cast shadows, too.

Butty mine are two years old. They make an impact against a white wall, displayed in a tall vase.

Ahh, very nice B.

My glycerined beech leaves are beginning to turn.......nicely!

Cut some red peony leaf stalks today and have stuck them in a dry vase on a windowsill. Nice.

Yes, and the tall red maple next to the weeping one is getting more red all the time now. Little Owls - how wonderful! Don't think I have ever seen (or heard) one of those.

Maple colours are stunning, aren't they Anno.

Great excitement here.The two Little Owls that sat, evening and early morning, all last Autumn on the chimney stack beyond our back wall, have just returned! I raced to get the binos, by which time, naturally, they had flown.

Now my green weeping maple (looks like a yurt) is turning and will soon be a mass of flaming foliage until the first gale...

Thanks, Butty. There are lots of beech trees in Cheshire, so when I go out in the country to shake off the remnants of this accursed cold, I will take the secateurs.

Pics of Autumn Lady's Tresses

Just read about your Autumn Lady's Tresses, butty. How lovely

We have had a run of three or four cold nights and chilly but sunny days. All but the last 5 or 10 percent of the leaves on our wild (possibly 'feral') plum tree have fallen off in the last night or two and are making a colourful leafy covering on my Monday scythings.

I've just identified a wild orchid that M. Butty found in the garden - Autumn Lady's Tresses. Minute and a beautiful growing habit. (Spiranthes Spiralis)
Aptly named.
Never seen one before but apparently they are quite common.

I'm going to try that too. It's a lovely idea. Thanks, butty.

Anno - I use 1 1/2 cups of glycerine to 3 cups of boiling water for about 12 sprays. Leave for several days until you can feel the slight oilyness on the underside of the leaves. Lay on paper for a while then put away until the colour has turned or just use immediately.

What's the proportion of glycerine to water, Butty? I'd love to try it for a change.

Yes, when I used to do it years and years ago too. Mum used to do them. First time in ages. Hope they work out.

What a lovely idea Butty. I have lots of 3ft tall beech saplings spouting up around my front garden and have been clipping them down with secateurs. Never gave a thought to treating them with glycerine. I used to do that years ago, and have got out of the habit of drying as many flowers and branches as I could.

Just been lane-hopping with my secateurs and brought back an armful of beech leaves. Mixed hot water with glyceryne and poured it into a jug, nipped off the bottom lot of leaves, and added the beech sprays to the jug. Should be a nicely golden brown bunch in time, that will be beautiful all winter. Will look good with the orange chinese lanterns, too.

Butter You are wonderful with words. I can picture the scene. Delightful.

Just got back from a near-perfect early autumn walk. Mild, warm sunshine, fresh hedgerows from yesterday's rain, Mr. Butty up a ladder touching up the shutters ready for winter, and the cat asleep on my drying walnuts. Put the just-picked dried seed heads in a pot on the table outside the kitchen door, am about to hang out the laundry after pinning up a pic. in my study of the grandkids in a field of big orange pumpkins.

Saw a tree creeper this morning. It was tree-creeping. Sweet wee bird.

Black sky for all of 15 minutes. Torrential rain. Lightning and a huge clap of thunder. Now the sky is mostly blue and all is calm. As Bags would say - hey ho!

fluff - You make Autumn sound wonderful - and it is!

As well as still tending Mr. B., I've started digging over some of the veg. patch and re-shaping my very woolly box balls. Brought in the last of the aubergines (pathetically small) but beautiful, and the last remaining tomatoes. Can feel a potato and aubergine curry coming on......

Am now very stiff.

We had a jay in the garden the other day. Horrible birds!

Bags, they grow everywhere. Muntjack deer don't eat them.