Wednesday 4 November 2015

Late Bloomers and New Arrivals

Millie and I go for little walks again, mainly around the castle. She is quite happy to revisit her favourite nooks and crannies and avidly reads the news left on every tussock by her friends. In her turn she leaves little messages for them. Like me, she is saying: I’m back!

There are still visitors of the human family kind around too.
After climbing onto the castle mound they take time to admire 
the beautiful scenery of the South Shropshire Hills.

Having had to ignore the garden for almost the whole of spring and summer
I finally found time and energy to have a wander around this month.
Considering it’s November, there are still a lot of treasures to be seen:

drooping fuchsia lanterns

 the silver seed heads of clematis in a rosemary bush

 variegated eleagnus and virginia creeper growing on the house wall
set each other off to perfection

 two varieties of geranium peep out from their foliage
amid fallen leaves



 a mophead hydrangea  

 shiny yellow flowers of hypericum  Hidcote

 and the South African osteospermum


and the next day the fog descended and 
stayed with us for three days.

Millie and I didn’t stay out for very long and to judge by the dearth
of messages left for her, neither did her friends.





42 comments:

  1. It's good to know that you are well enough to be out with Millie, catching up with changes in the garden and the news from the canine world. I hope you stay well now!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Friko - glad you got out .. and aren't the flowers, birds and bees still going strong this year - during my travels the bird song came over, and the flowers were still out and still blooming wonderfully. We had fog for two days I think ... but now it's torrenting down ... though the view across Pevensey Bay was pretty clear as I walked along to my talk.

    Glad you are out and about though .. the fuscia is lovely ... love them ... cheers Hilary

    ReplyDelete
  3. Good to see you out and about, I envy you those Fuchsias......every year!

    ReplyDelete
  4. So many pretty magics you still have in your garden, so short of winter. And you have more strength and better mood, that's good. The little steps count, and the small joys, and the tiny happy events, the worth while hours and the lighter days... :-).

    ReplyDelete
  5. Glad you two got out before the fog descended. We were visiting friends in Herefordshire the past week and weekend and were glad to have been out and about on Friday -- which was glorious. Saturday and Sunday were really disappointing...

    ReplyDelete
  6. Walking around the castle, that sounds very romantic to me. No walking around castles here in the USA. Your flower photos are gorgeous.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Friko, it looks to me as if you and Millie found lots to enjoy...before the fog veil appeared.

    How amazing to see so many vivid flowers sttill in bloom. Fuchsias are truly show stoppers, but I enjoyed seeing every picture. The clematis reminded me of Andy Warhol's wigs!

    Hoping you did receive the email from me?

    xo to you and yours.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Lovely to have a long autumn...and very pleased that you are now out and about to enjoy it.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Isn't it exciting to find new things in familiar places?
    And thanks for letting us explore them with you - and Millie.

    ReplyDelete
  10. How I loved walking with you (and Millie).
    Megathanks.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Such beauty in your world
    here by the woods nothing
    planted by the terrace
    a few lingering blooms.
    Please continue to take care..

    ReplyDelete
  12. I'm so glad you're up and about. It gave me a little lift to see a new post by you was waiting to be read!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Oh, you sound back in place, back in a good routine. I have to dig up my hypericum as it becomes so invasive. I am sorry about that, because it is so easy to care for. I can see the ancestors ghosts in that castle photo so pleased that modern man has stopped by to wonder.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Ah, these photos are all so lovely . . . even, in its own way, the fog, though three days of it would get more than a bit wearing! Those fuschias are dazzlers, and I love the perspective you chose for the photograph, and I love equally well the more subtle charms in the other photographs. I think of you often on these fall days, so full of beauty, yet a harbinger of a season we both like much less, as I recall. Still, carpe diem must be the motto, and clearly here, you have! (PS, I've changed a setting in the slideshow my way and hope now it may load for you. Thanks for alerting me to the problem.)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Well, you not only found blooms but know their names and latin names!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Our children loved to explore the castle ruins in Ireland!
    Along the cliffs of Ballycotton are walls of wild fuschia as far as the eye can see. Your photos are exquisite!

    ReplyDelete
  17. The flowers are beautiful. What a great place to explore.

    Love,
    Janie

    ReplyDelete
  18. The flowers stayed around for you, dear Friko, to let you know that all will be OK.

    I am glad to hear that the incredible fog that came upon London is gone. It was shown on the news yesterday and it was quite ominous looking.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Glad to read you're out and about. Lovely photos, lovely flowers! I've never seen blue geraniums before and wonder if I can find any here. I love the mysterious feel of the fog photo.

    ReplyDelete
  20. A turn around the garden with a camera is a good way to really see what's there. You found some late summer treasures. Glad they hung around for awhile. Glad that you and Millie are enjoying your outings again.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Good to see you and Millie out and about - and finding so many treasures. I really would hate that fog so hope your world is bright again now.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Fuchsia in bloom in November!! I don't think I've ever seen that around here. The clematis seeds are wonderful. But my favourite picture of this lot is certainly the one of the group of visitors on the castle mound.
    There are some pictures of foggy views from my kitchen window still on my camera, waiting to be turned into a blog post...

    ReplyDelete
  23. Your garden seems to have continued producing great beauty despite your lack of involvement. It's good to know you and Millie are back to exploring your beautiful world once more. Thank you for sharing the adventure with us.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Oh, it is so lovely! Isn't it a treasure to have such lovely things waiting for you, especially when you couldn't get out and enjoy them the way you wanted earlier? It's as though they waited just for you -- as well they should!

    I love the idea of Millie's message posts! Very clever!

    ReplyDelete
  25. Glad you and Millie are out and about again! I have to admit I have a weak spot for fuchsias!! Those are absolutely gorgeous!! The rest of the flora is lovely also...but the fuchsia are stunning. :)

    ReplyDelete
  26. The natural world is always reassuring and the weather has been wonderfully mild for November! I think the fog looks rather picturesque.

    ReplyDelete
  27. So glad you are able to be up and about. Your garden has many small suprises, all vignettes to delight in.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Lovely photos, glad you got out. I refer to these dog exchanges as "peemail". LOL

    XO
    WWW

    ReplyDelete
  29. So glad you are able to be up and about, do take care and rest up when you have to. Every Blessing from www.freda.org.uk

    ReplyDelete
  30. Love your pictures, Friko. Glad you're up and about again. My O/H is improving day by day so here's to 2016 xx

    ReplyDelete
  31. Marvelous photos! I wish we had old ruins here in Oregon, USA. There have been some 9,000 year old sandals discovered in a cave and some 14,000 year old human coprolite that was also discovered in a cave, so people have, perhaps, lived in Oregon longer than they’ve lived where you are, but our early inhabitants left very little that a person alive today could study or feel a connection through.

    ReplyDelete
  32. One of the things I've become interested in over the past months are our native wildflowers. One of my favorites is Clematis drummondii, or "old man's beard." It's native here in Texas, but clearly related to yours, even if the species isn't the same. We have some native species of Hypericum, too. and bless your heart, you've given me my second opportunity today to use the word "fuchsia," which I've misspelled for years. I only found out about my error six months ago or so, so I'm happy for chances to say things like, "You fuchsias are beautiful!" Which they are.

    ReplyDelete
  33. What a nice day for strolling, Friko! I'm glad you're well and continue going for a walk with Millie. I love your photos, they're very professional. Lovely fuchsia!

    ReplyDelete
  34. gardens will survive without us. glad that you are out and about again.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Oh, my, what beauty in your autumn garden. I am especially jealous of the fuchsia. They aren't reliably hardy here and when grown in pots generally succumb to whitefly or some similar pest. It also is too hot in summer for them. Like delphiniums, they are a garden treat that has broken my heart repeatedly.

    ReplyDelete
  36. I love your treasures! :-)

    Greetings from London.

    ReplyDelete
  37. I love your photos....the ruins are lovely! Walks are always good. Ralph and I found turkey feathers near our big tobacco barn....wild turkey's. We wonder how they are going to get along with our tame turkey's.

    ReplyDelete
  38. What a joy it was to see your garden again. It amazing to see such beauty still blooming in November.

    Welcome back to world around you that gives you, and Millie, such pleasure. Thanks for sharing your adventures around your world with us.

    ReplyDelete
  39. Hallo Friko,
    schöne Eindrücke von der Natur - am schönsten gefällt mir das letzte Foto mit dem Nebel. Falls Du es noch nihct bemerkt hast: ich habe mittlerweile eine eigene Webseite: http://www.rheinland-blogger.net. Wäre schön, wenn Du dort gelegentlich herum stöbern würdest.

    Gruß Dieter

    ReplyDelete
  40. Dear Friko, I smiled broadly when you wrote about Millie getting and leaving messages for her friends. In one of her books, Mary Sarton said that when cats sit on the window sill each day, they are "reading the newspaper." And that's so true. They know their neighborhood and they observe. Peace.

    ReplyDelete
  41. My Northern California Autumn is not dissimilar to yours described. Glad you are finding time to wonder and linger, Dear

    ReplyDelete
  42. Your flowers are beautiful! A real feast for the eyes:)

    ReplyDelete

Comments are good, I like to know what you think of my posts. I know you'll keep it civil.