The allotment site is looking increasingly bare although many of the surrounding trees have retained some of their golden autumnal leaves late on in the year.
The trees are a haven for birds and I cannot fail to be struck by the immense volume of their chatter as they begin to settle down in roosts before early dusk as the days become shorter.
The mild weather lately has given me a chance to clear the beds and to shore up the sides with planks of wood so that the water can collect in ditches around the edge. It is messy work, as the ditches are already full to the brim, and each time it rains I imagine how far the water levels will have risen on the plot. Gradually I am winning and there should be more space for growing crops once all the raised beds are finished.
There are still a few vegetables to harvest and I have been eating my way through the celeriac and remaining cabbages before starting to dig up the swede. These have not done so well, as several of them are small and woody, but next year I shall focus on growing more winter greens, such as kale, which can stay in the ground and be eaten throughout the winter.
The globe artichoke plant is taking centre stage now in its new place between my plum and apple trees and as a relative of the thistle it has similarly dramatic and finely-shaped leaves. These add colour against a backdrop of bare earth until a circle of snowdrops I planted beneath the apple tree should appear in early spring.
