Cotoneaster – Notes From My Garden

Final Autumn Photos?

Published on October 18, 2025October 17, 2025 by Catherine28 Comments

It’s very odd that a week without a glimmer of sunshine didn’t bother me at all. There has been heavy cloud cover all week, but it has also been very calm, and although temperatures are dropping, it’s been pleasant outdoors. Midweek I finally managed to fit in time for a walk in the park where I gathered autumn leaves for some photos. Needless to say, the photos haven’t been taken, and spring bulbs are still in their boxes in the garage. It seems life has kept me busy once again.

All that aside, the weather was perfect to capture a few photos, so here’s the pick for Six on Saturday.

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Wishing You a Joyful Christmas

Published on December 24, 2024December 23, 2024 by Catherine11 Comments

Since I arrived home from my visit to Washington I’ve had just one excursion into my soggy garden – almost afraid to find many plants ruined. Instead, the garden was slumbering gently…and displaying a few hopeful signs of plant life yet to come.

Seeing the first shoots of next year’s flowers is always exciting. Iris reticulata ‘Purple Hill’ is a bit early, but it’s reassuring to know the bulbs are alive!

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Christmas Berries, Buds & First Snow

Published on December 23, 2023January 13, 2024 by Catherine20 Comments

Six on Saturday

It’s almost the end of 2023 – it seems to have arrived so quickly! For my final Six on Saturday of 2023, I have five topics and ten photos, and I know that’s a slight deviation from the normal requirements, but I hope our host, Jim won’t object!

Frosted Cotoneaster Horizontalis

The one plant in my garden that takes on the most Christmassy appearance is the Cotoneaster. Those bright red berries and tiny leaves coated in white wouldn’t look out of place as a decoration on top of a Christmas cake, but the frost would melt away as soon as it reached the kitchen, wouldn’t it! I’ll leave it where it is. 😁

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One Productive Gardening Day

Published on October 7, 2023December 16, 2023 by Catherine31 Comments

Monday was a day of gardening from morning until late afternoon with my husband doing all the heavy work (as usual) while I potted on seedlings in the greenhouse and supervised (not as easy as it sounds!) the removal or lifting and dividing of plants. In general, the borders were tidied up, weeds removed and the grass was cut and edged. Pots of summer bedding were emptied and made ready to receive winter and spring-flowering bulbs. That one productive day cheered me up and I felt we’d achieved a lot, though a quick glance at my list in the evening reminded me that there was so much more to deal with. But that’s gardening, isn’t it, it never ends.

I also managed to find time to take a few photographs and I’m glad I did because by Tuesday the rain was thundering down and it’s been wet every day since then, including today where we have an amber alert for rain.

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Six on Saturday 2020 31-10

Published on October 31, 2020December 5, 2020 by Catherine28 Comments

This isn’t the autumn I imagined. Walks in the park filled with rich colour and crisp leaves that crunch underfoot; cold, bright days, warm scarves and cosy boots. October 2020 has been rain, rain and more rain – with winds that strip the trees bare before they’re quite ready to give up the leaves of their own accord.

I’m cheered though, by next week’s forecast that shows by the middle of the week, some dry weather is ahead, with temperatures dropping…it’s been a strangely mild month. Perhaps next week it will begin to feel a bit more like autumn.

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