Preparing the garden and vegetable patch for autumn and winter

The weather was relatively kind last weekend and I was able to get a few hours in the garden and on the veg plot completing a few jobs that were on the to do list. 

I mentioned in my last post that I was thinking of clearing the Greenhouse as the tomatoes were coming to an end. That job  has been ticked off the list. The last of the fruit has been picked and all the plants cleared out and composted. It is always a little sad, accepting that there will be no more Tomatoes to come but also strangely satisfying when the job is done and I am left with a clean and clear Greenhouse to prepare ready for next year. The only things left in there now are the Carrots and Spring Onions as part of my winter crop experiment. 

The French Lavender has also been pulled-up and composted. I mentioned in a previous post it has sulked for most of this year, it really didn't enjoy the changing weather conditions, and I have replaced it with English Lavender which I know from past experience will be happy in my garden and is not prone to get all mopey just because wee get some unseasonal rain. The soil in the bed in which the French Lavender was planted is good loose soil and drains well but the weird weather patterns this season really did mess with the plants. I did take a number of cuttings before composting the French Lavender, it is a lovely plant, and they currently reside in my conservatory. Hopefully a couple at least will take as the plan is to plant into pots next spring in which I can give the plant the conditions it wants and place in the garden appropriately. The end of my garden on what I rather grandly refer to as the upper terrace (patio at the end of the garden) is directly south facing and by placing the pots up there they will get plenty of sunshine all day - it's as close to Mediterranean conditions as I can get in my garden. The pots can of course also be moved under cover at the first sign of inclement weather, hopefully leaving me with much happier plants.

In the other flower bed I have moved the couple of Giant Lily bulbs to the centre of the bed and two Heather plants have been added to each side - the front of the bed already having Hebe shrubs running along it. As yet I am undecided what will be added to that bed; there are a number of Allium bulbs in there along with the two Giant Lilies and some thought will be going into that bed over the coming weeks. There are two small Aster's on either side and three small Rudbeckias in the middle so I will probably plan the future planting around those. 

I also picked-up a couple of Ferns recently at the Garden Centre and they have been planted and placed behind the bench on the patio nearest the house directly outside the conservatory. They get plenty of light there but no direct sunlight at all so should hopefully thrive and will add a little interest to the view of the garden from the house over the winter months. On the table by that bench I now have a number of pots that contain Daffodil and Hyacinth bulbs, one full of Mint and four small Strawberry plants that are Runners from the plants on the Veg Patch. If nothing else it makes an empty space look a bit more interesting and the bulbs will add a splash of colour to the patio come spring next year whilst all being well the Strawberries and Mint will be in easy reach come summer whilst sitting under the Pergola with a beer! 

Cheers 🍺