Shades of Autumn

It is very much the end of the year in my garden. There is hardly any veg left. Parsnips and Cavolo Nero are currently being harvested "on demand"; there are a few more Brussels Sprouts to come; the last few chillies; plenty of Parsley still; a couple of Lettuces... Otherwise, that's about it. The Chicories are not ready yet, and the PSB will not mature for another couple of months. This doesn't mean to say that there is nothing of interest in the garden, though. You just have to look more carefully for it.

The "Christmas Bell" chillis are incredibly slow to ripen. All the leaves on the plant have shrivelled up - most have fallen - but the fruits are stubbornly green. Well, OK, maybe a little bit reddish now, but certainly not red.

Chilli "Christmas Bell"

The Callicarpa is putting on a good show though. It has loads of berries this year.

Callicarpa, aka "Beauty Bush"

The white rose (variety unknown) is still producing one or two blooms. Where I have missed the odd one when dead-heading, some quite big rose-hips have formed, which are beautiful in their own right.

Rose-hip

The shrivelled black berries of the Hypericum are also quite striking in a macabre sort of way. I wonder whether the birds will eat them?

Hypericum berries

I'm definitely leaving these Marjoram seedheads for the birds. I have seen Goldfinches tucking in to them in the past.



Marjoram seed-heads

Marjoram seed-head



The Dogwood shrubs have lost almost all their leaves now, and the colour of their stems is beginning to be more apparent:

Dogwood

I think this last photo epitomises the time of year quite nicely:

Maple leaf suspended on Dogwood stems