So I am growing strawberries in September. It surprised me too. Ever since I evicted the two plants out of the greenhouse for their firm refusal to grow, blossom or even survive, they have thrived. Forgotten by the fence I suddenly spotted flash of red. Not a great flavour, but a strawberry it was.

The seasonal changes come to our garden, as well as the farm, in the usual order but there is always a little surprise.

So while the onions are happily drying in the shed, the apples adorn our replanted trees (when we grubbed out the orchards, we kept two Cameos) and the tomatoes are just about done, there is also aloe vera growing in the compost heap. In the compost next to it have sprouted three tomato seedlings worth Gardener’s World coverage. Seems to me that my garden appreciates as little input from me as possible.

In the meantime the leaves continue to carpet the lawn and the morning mists sit atop the lake every morning. There is chill in the air and the sun not strong enough to warm up the soil as much as it did in July.

A couple of months since they’ve joined our little garden, and the hens and their little man are devoted to one another. I watched today as each of the hens in turn went inside the coop to lay an egg and the cockerel accompanied every single one and guarded the entrance to the little house while she was busy. When all the eggs were laid, they quickly reunited and carried on with the very important destruction of the flower beds.

They have stopped flapping at everything and everybody. Even the noise of the mower leaves them serene-ish.