Gardening days

Weekends of late have been full of gardening activity (weather permitting). We have removed a large section of overgrown, bushy shrubbery from the side of the house, and are about two thirds through putting all the twigs and branches through a chipper. It's a noisy, dirty, backbreaking job, but I'll have some nice mulch at the end of it. I've also been battling the overgrown-with-oxalis strawberry bed, and that job is taking so much longer than I thought that I don't even want to talk about it.

So, onto something a little more cheerful - shall I show you how my garden grows?

The butter beans of summer have succumbed to the frost, but the broad beans are loving life and growing bushy and beautiful.

I have plenty of cabbages, kale, broccoli and cauliflower...

Even some bok choi which is obviously tasty.

Parsnips are fattening up (and taste much better after a frost).

Foreground: spring onions and background: leeks (my pride and joy!)

In the glasshouse the last peppers are still ripening.

A little viola, her face dirty from the rain.

As I took these photos the sky opened up once more so I scrambled for the shelter of the porch and used my zoom lens. See the chrysanthemum at the back fence? It's flattened under the weight of the water. Poor thing...

That's better!