End of the open season

We have reached the autumn equinox and the time when Glenarn has always closed until next spring. Thanks to everyone who has supported us this year, despite the poor early spring our visitor numbers are very similar to last year and have spread more evenly across the months. We've decided to keep the garden open until the first of October as it's still looking good although the weather forecast for next week isn't hopeful!

I've been spending my time sorting seed for various seed exchanges and potting on this year's seedlings, some already out into the nursery bed. We dug manure into this earlier in the summer so it's rich but still warm from the summer.

The bees have been sorted for the winter and are now being fed back their own honey- they get the uncapped nectar from the frames when we spin off the honey. I can see them still busy in the garden too in the ivy which is just starting to flower and in the red hot pokers that they love, together with this red admiral butterfly. On a good day, all's well with the world. The gunnera have been put to bed in their neat wigwams.