They have gone .

[Georgepa]

The swallows have gone leaving only a few house martins behind urging their young to leave their mud clad homes and head south to warmer climes . Our hedgerows are full of scarlet hips ,old man's beard and blackberries . Earnest couples with walking sticks and empty ice-cream containers attack the brambles trying to pick those oh so succulent berries that are tantalisingly just out of reach. Our corn brown fields have turned terracotta waiting to be sown with winter wheat .Across the front of our house the virginia creeper is going through its autumnal metamorphosis .Yet Autumn is not properly underway - the trees are still green ,leaves barely tinged , hanging baskets still blooming but the signs are there , early morning cobwebs hanging like crystal bejewelled sculptures from silken threads -beautiful dew covered works of art ,each one individually different ,each one so delicate and transient - how I marvel .

The evenings are drawing in and soon there will be the smell of woodsmoke in the air and our valley will explode in a riot of seasonal colour .I shall enjoy it I know I will .

[Heady]

Autumn has always make me feel sad. Now even more, especially as the Swallows flying off, use to be our signal to book our flights, pack our bags and follow them back to Africa.

Lots of love

Heady

[Georgepa in reply to Heady]

Sorry Heady didn't want to make you sad - they will be back and maybe it will be a new start .

Love Georgpa

[Yvonneandgeorge in reply to Georgepa]

George I so love your posts, no blackberries around here, use to love to pick them, oh well better start stocking up on wood and coal for the fire, hopefully a bit more sunny days to come. Lovely George xxxx

[jzygirl]

Every year we have marveled at mother nature's gift of autumn's colurs Brian with an artists eye me just because i loved the colours. Knowing that it wouldn't be long before we had the burst of colour in spring.

The starlings seem to have had thier gathering and have departed unless they have found somewhere else to eat plenty before they go. In the morning we have the noisy birds fly over head from the place they roost to the feeding ground then back again in the evening.... each day the group gets bigger and the calling gets louder.

There is so much that happens and we don't even take time to notice it. So l hope you will carry on taking time to notice the marvels and of course sharing with us.. Janexx

[loppylugs5]

Thankyou for that picture.I must pick the last Bramleys and top up the pavement box there will be lots of walkers today being a Sunday.Our housemartins have been gone a week,after some very vocal debates.Px

[NannaB]

Thank you for another lovely description Georgepa. For the first time, this year I never saw a housemartin above our house and haven't seen swallows here for years. Why oh why did we all change to PVC soffits ( spelling?) so now the birds can't stick the mud under the gutters to make their nest. Bird life has changed here. We now have buzzards regularly circling high above the roof top and a couple of weeks ago a quail was eating the corn that had dropped from the bird feeder right by our back door.

I took Colin to Tonbridge yesterday and walked along the river. We walked quietly past the fishermen, waved to the young passenger in a rowing boat as the female rower, possibly his mother, tried to reverse out of the overhanging branches she had managed to get caught up in. We stopped and watched a man and his two small children as they threw a stick into the river and laughed as their golden labradoodle belly flopped from the bank to retrieve it and then swam a few yards to where the bank dropped lower so she could climb out up the now very wet, muddy slope she had obviously used many times. The children squealed with delight as she ran close to us and shook the water from her fuzzy coat. Further on we stopped and just watched the water flow past and I could almost forget the situation we were in. I told our son what we were going to do and had a lovely surprise when he rang and asked where we were as he would come and find us. He did, just as we reached the mobile coffee shop. He fed C through his PEG while I bought coffee and a snack for us both. When we returned to our cars, the thermometers showed 28 degrees. Not bad for the latter part of September. Long may this glorious weather last so we can all get out and marvel at the changing seasons.

Happy Sunday Georgepa.

X

[Amilazy]

Beautifully said George I always enjoy this season of fruitfulness colour and gathering in.

Thanks

[doglington]

Thanks for that picture George.

Chris always picked blackberries for me to make jam and pies. He is itching to get up and go !!!

I've always thought spiders'webs were beautiful, agree the jewels of raindrops and berries take my breath.

Must take chris for a walk to enjoy the autumn colours.

love, Jean x

[nanonthenet1]

Lovely, Georgepa, I do like Autumn, I love the colours, I always want to head for the mountains of Snowdonia, the colours are just beautiful, and walking in the dry crunchy fallen leaves ( if it doesn't rain) 😊