Through the Garden Gate November 2018
The November garden feels very much this old watering can, it has seen better days!
We have had a number of storms pass through this month. The wind has been the strongest since we moved here over four years ago. The gusts have reached around 60 miles per hour, it has caused damage with several panes of glass breaking in the greenhouse, battering a fence panel and uplifting concrete holding the fence panel in place!
We have learnt that the easiest way to remove the shattered glass is to use a high power hoover!
The garden is still looking green in the borders and the stalks of the sedum still look attractive close up.
but a bit more messy from a distance! The garden needs some tidying up, weather and time permitting. I have noticed on the brief periods I have been outside that some spring plants are already producing buds, is that the same in other areas? The number of migrant birds passing through also seems down compared with other years, maybe it is because of our changing weather conditions.
Yesterday's storm created a blanket of foam against the black hut in the harbour and it wasn't a day to be outside! These views were taken with a long zoom camera so we were much further back than it appears. It was difficult to stand or keep the camera still!
How has your garden been this month? If you would like to join in with Through the garden gate each month please let me know in the comments below and I will add your site.
Sarah x
Hi Sarah - we are in Scotland at present - our garden here is dying back slowly though I found a Candleabra Primula in flower by the pond. It is calm today but of course we are in the middle of all the activity here for the missing couple whose car was found on the beach just along from our cottage. The weather on Wednesday was treacherous and although sunny for most of today it is bitterly cold.
ReplyDeleteTrump reckons there are no changing weather conditions- he should be here in Scotland at the momemt this is the worst we have ever known it - not sure how long the sea defence walls will last with the batterings they get now.
Those little boats look quite vulnerable to those high seas.
ReplyDeleteA bit grim to have your greenhouse shattering. Hope it is all fixed now.
We are under snow here, Sarah. I finished the garden after the first snowfall several weeks ago. Winter is much too soon this year.
ReplyDeleteWow, I love that last photo, spectacular. Sorry about the damage to your greenhouse though. The garden is looking lovely and autumnal. I always think about all the little insects hiding away at this time of year and all of the bacterial action, breaking everything down again. It always seems as though there's a lot of important stuff going on out there. I've got a brilliant load of fungi on some wood I keep lying about. And some other ones popping up here and there. I hope the weather calms down for you over the weekend and that it's a good one. CJ xx
ReplyDeleteOh my what a shame about your greenhouse. Love the sedums too. Ours don’t seem to grow so well in this garden. Another storm laden day here . Lots of boats were damaged in our harbour. We certainly need the rain though. B x
ReplyDeleteDearest Sarah, good morning! It looks as if your coastal areas have been effected as much as those here in the states, with unusually high winds, rain and damage. I hope your garden will flourish come spring! Our garden is resting under a gentle blanket of snow, and we did have a large tree removed from the center of our boxwood garden. An old, weathered urn now takes the place of the tree, and a Spruce tip now acts as a Christmas tree. Gentle, green and festive. Enjoy your holidays!
ReplyDeleteI was trying to think of a poem..re the Garden Gate..I had it in the back
ReplyDeleteof my mind, could'nt find it anywhere....
BUT..! I did find this....
Today I passed your garden gate,
It rattled to and fro.
I don't remember it this way,
The gate I used to know.
Today I touched your garden gate,
The crumbling wood and rust.
How could I replace them now,
Its pieces turned to dust?
Today I breached your garden gate
As I had done before.
I wondered if you might be there,
Tilling earth once more.
Today I closed your garden gate
Behind me once again.
I walked along your garden path
The way I did back then.
Today beyond your garden gate
Where I shall wait for now;
They say you won't, but I just know,
You must return somehow.
Today beyond your garden gate
Where I've shed many tears;
They all expect to see me there,
The place I've come for years.
Today beyond your garden gate
I felt you there somehow.
Twas then I came, at last to peace.
A place unknown till now.
For just beyond your garden gate
My destiny was cast.
A place from where no man returns.
I found you there at last.
GREENWOLFE 1962
Thanks Willie that poem is wonderful! When I first started ' Through the Garden Gate' in January 2016 I featured the gate in my Grandmother's garden. Coming from a family of gardeners now no longer around, your poem brought back so many memories of them gardening in their own gardens. I'm so glad you managed to find it and share it with us! Sarah x
DeleteMany plants in my garden are from and remind me of my mother.
DeleteI love your climate as it sounds a little more tropical than our winters. Winds, yes, but too much cold. And a rare December tornado with hail passed nearby last night. It was surreal. I'd hate to be a fisherman there! Donna@gather
ReplyDeleteMy tutor at college always referred to sedums as part of the Tatty Clump group - I love their seedheads though, giving a bit of texture to the winter garden. I'm so sorry to read about the storms that you've had and the damage suffered; your last photo reminds me of storms off the Cornish coast; I once nearly lost my car in Porthleven car park during a storm! You'll see from my November post that I have buds on my Morello cherry fruit trees here (a bit worrying pre-winter!). I'd love you to pop over and have a read! Caro xx
ReplyDeletehttps://urbanvegpatch.blogspot.com/2018/11/seize-the-day-november-garden.html
Portleven does seem to suffer badly with storms! I am off to read your post now and have added you to the links above. Sarah x
DeleteMy goodness Sarah the storms sound dreadful... and obviously have done so much damage to the garden. It is good to see you have a bit of greenery left. Keep warm!
ReplyDeleteWell, West Bay looked pretty wild that day, I imagine it was both exhilarating and alarming at the same time. I notice quite a few trees with buds and catkins on preparing for next spring, it reassures me that renewal is occurring!
ReplyDeleteI love the sedums as they go over too. Sorry about all your storm damage, we don't seem to have been as affected here. We have had a lot of rain though. I'm late again with my post, here it is : https://margaretspatch.blogspot.com/2018/12/through-garden-gate-november.html
ReplyDeleteI love all the posts you publish ! The photo with all the foam looks great and the last photo with the water splashing high looks spectacular!
ReplyDeleteHope you're doing fine! Stopped by to wish a Merry Christmas!!
ReplyDeleteI hope you have recovered from the destruction.
ReplyDelete