Slow going at end of the season

11:02am Thursday 11th October 2007

Comments (1)   Have your say »

AS the dark nights close in and the thermometer dips, there is not much going on in my garden at the moment.

I think I will put the garden to bed for the winter, so this will be my last column for a while.

At the moment, the only things growing are the cabbages (slowly), runner beans (furiously), celeriac, a couple of swedes and bit of bolted lettuce. The strawberries have stopped producing, but hopefully they will come to life again next summer.

Even the flower bed is slowing down and all the marigolds have withered.

The one thing you notice most, even when the weather has been topsy-turvy, like this year, is the passage of the seasons.

The runner beans are still producing loads of beans, some quite large, and show no sign of stopping just yet.

My carrots and leeks are the same as they were a few weeks ago. I will probably uproot them during the next few weeks.

While some of the herbs, such as marjoram, have died others, like rosemary, are still going strong.

We even have a few small clusters of tomatoes on a couple of plants we rescued from the ill-fated growbags. Maybe they will fruit properly if we take them inside.

Two regular readers of the Urban Gardener are Dennis and Lynda Walmsley, from Westhoughton, who garden here and at their holiday home in Plemet, Brittany.

"As a regular reader of your column and a fellow urban gardener, I thought I would give you an update on the Westhoughton urban garden - remember our photos in the one of the early editions.

"The tomatoes are still being harvested, the best crop has been from the Tumbling Toms, bought from Barton Grange, which are still thriving in the greenhouse without any heat.

"Leeks and beetroot are ready to be lifted and the chilli plant, which is resident in the conservatory, is giving off fresh chillies to die for.

The next batch will go into my chilli con carne for a family gathering.

"Keep up the column - it's good to see that the old traditions can be kept alive. Remember the good life with Tom and Barbara?"