Into November

Into November with some Autumnal trees.  Photos taken at the Dorothy Clive gardens early last week.

It was a short and lovely walk after coffee and a teacake in the tea room.  The colours were stunning.

What else have I been doing?  Mostly reading in the afternoons as I'm still not feeling great after the virus which pinched most of October.  I picked up a book in the library.  It sounded intriguing.  The words Curator, Castles and Medieval King sounded right up my street.

I'm halfway through and it is unusual and easy to read.  I'm enjoying it so far as it drifts between the present day and the court of the King.  I see it is shortlisted for this year's Booker prize.  I wonder if it will win?

Other books waiting on my kindle are:-

The Forgotten Bookshop in Paris by Daisy Wood and The Beaulieu Allotments Historical Society by Olivia Hayfield.

None of them my usual crime fiction choice of reading.  It will make a change.  I have two books by my favourite crime writers reserved at the library.  The Dying Light by Ann Cleeves and  Miss Wolcott's Ghost by Louise Penny.

I received an e-mail from the RSPB urging  me to vote for this year's 'Bird of the Year' 

There are five birds on the list, four listed as UK conservation status Red and one as Amber.  I was torn between two.  The Lapwing or Peewit as we used to call it as children.  Growing up in a small Derbyshire village the fields were full of them.  Cuckoos and House Martins also bring back memories of that time.  However I eventually opted for the Greenfinch because when we first came to live here they were one of the most often seen birds in the garden.  We've seen them dwindle over the last thirty years until we didn't see one for ages.  This last couple of years we've seen one or two pairs.  In fact there was one on the bird feeders this morning, I didn't have my camera handy when I saw it so no photos.
All for now. Take care.

Looking Autumnal

The tulip tree leaves are turning yellow already.  It's a very Autumnal thing but it could also be lack of any decent showers of rain lately.  Leaves are also falling on the top lawn.  August is fast fading.

The garden is looking uncared for, although work has been done.

Especially on clearing the gravel path of weeds.

Heleniums and Echinaceas are doing well.

There is a small apple on the small apple tree.

Out and about on our walks there have been plenty of berries and fungi too.

There is now a slight chill in the morning air and jackets, admittedly lightweight ones, have been worn again first thing.

Can you bear another Wallaby?  I hope so.  This one is Nibbles.

He's at Rudyard Lake, near the café.  He was illustrated by Hannah Walton and Beki Kremer in collaboration with Leek and District foodbank.

The last two next time.

A Lakeside Walk and Homemade Soup

This morning even though it was quite windy we headed out for our usual walk around the lake at Trentham Gardens.  We hadn't been for a walk around the lakeside for a couple of weeks and were quite surprised at the changes and additions we found along the way.

 We were looking for signs of autumn and certainly found them.  The leaves on the Tulip Trees along the paths near the lake were far more advanced into their autumn colours than ours at home which is still quite green with just a few slightly yellow leaves.

We thought we might find some fungi but didn't expect to find these Fly Agaric toadstools.  There were loads of them across the grass, some opened others just appearing from the ground.  

As we walked around we noticed quite a few new sculptures had been installed.

 I think these are supposed to be Brown Trout which are found nearby in the River Trent.

Deer.  We don't see the wild deer herd dashing thought the undergrowth anymore, although I think can still be spotted up in the woods.

  Owl

Two horses' heads on plinths

 Below another owl

 I bet he or she stands out in the dark.

Pheasants

 Hare - this one had just been placed ready for installing - it was sitting on a black plastic bag and fenced in by red and white tape.

Frog, a lady standing nearby called him Jeremy Fisher which made me smile.

We saw lots of other seasonal fungi, leaves and plants along the way.   

There were lots of water birds on the lake.  Cormorant, Grebe,
Heron and Swans both black and white, lots of Canada geese, Coots, Mallards and Moorhens too.

After a wonderful breezy walk in both bright sunshine and the occasional bout of drizzle we returned home to warm up some homemade soup.  Leek and potato with homemade bread.  I love these bright, autumnal October mornings.  I'm also glad we went out this morning because as I type this the wind has really picked up and the rain is battering the windows.  Such a day of contrasts.

Monday Miscellany

Enjoying the sights, colours and sometimes the tastes of September

Rose hips

Elderberries

Apples

Rowan Berries

Blackberries

The plums on the tree in our garden are beginning to ripen now

Lovely to eat as they are but I've also made an apple and plum crumble for tea or dinner depending on which part of the country you come from.
 Happy Monday.
 

Autumn

An Autumn Haiku for National Poetry Day

Wind rustles through trees
Crisp leaves fall upon the ground
where green turns to gold