Ode to Autumn

Season of mist and mellow fruitfulness

Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;

Conspiring with him how to load and bless

With fruit the vines that round the thatched-eves run;

To bend with apples the moss'd cottage-trees,

And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;

To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells

With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,

Extract from Ode to Autumn by John Keats 

This week it has been very autumnal. We have had some deluge rain that unearthed the sunflowers in the Artful Garden so that they were lying across the path. I managed to stake them back up again and their sunny faces are once again shinning from up high.

I visited Croft House farm at Houghton last Friday and they had a young orchard ladened with fruit.

Apple tree loaded with fruit

Scrummy pears

These lovely white geese kept waddling away from me when I was trying to take a photo.

Waddling geese

This begonia flower is so vibrant when you see it from both the front and the back of the flower head.

 Glowing Begonia

Sunset pink on the reverse

The carthamus are bright orange pom poms in my front garden.

Spiky orange pom poms

The hedgerows are all looking dull. Many of the plants have gone to seed and berries are now forming.

Bright red rowan berries on the rowan tree.

Rich rowan berries

The hawthorn berries are also red and good food for the birds in the winter.

Hawthorn beads

The leaves of the horse chestnut tree are very large. The horse chestnuts are just beginning to ripen.

Horse chestnut leaf

If you look close you can see the chestnuts

An unripe horse chestnut

The Rosebay willowherb has gone to seed.

Rosebay willowherb spires

The thistles seeds look like little ballet skirts.

Thistle ballet skirts

Farmers are gathering straw in the fields. The bales are oblong and round.

Square and round

I visited Penrith Cooperative store and found these lovely exhibits from a time gone by.

How many of these do you recognise?

How many of these have you used?

Pretty old china

Lovely old biscuit tins

My Autumn raspberries are starting to ripen and I am collecting fruit every other day.

Scrumcious

We are still getting fleeting milky sunsets.

Golden haze