Thoughts of the approaching winter and dark days when the garden is cloaked in darkness takes a toll on the spirits of even the hardiest gardener, says Tom Smart
This time of year, it’s as if darkness is stalking me. Like a predator in the long savannah grass, it lies in wait, unseen, then slowly creeps forward. I notice it gradually. The changes are incremental and steady. Then my anxiety begins to build. Finally, there is a dusky realisation, or maybe more of an acceptance of a cold unalterable fact: winter is coming.
While it lasts, I try to live in denial of autumn. It’s a season which can be truly beautiful. There is a large field maple tree in my back garden, and it perfectly catches the evening light. When the angle of the sun dips, and the tree’s leaves turn a shade of burnt copper, it is stunning. Over in the vegetable patch there’s still much to harvest. There are red apples hanging low, ready to be picked. There are carrots that need lifting and cabbages to cut. And there is still colour. My roses have budded up and burst out in one final swan song of bloom. There are autumn days in garden where I am very happy. But as the weeks slip toward the new year, I become more and more apprehensive about the changing of the seasons.
Continue reading...from Gardening blog | The Guardian http://ift.tt/2ec8B3E
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