Today was beautiful in so many ways, the first of which was our precious Sun shining as if pure gold was spreading across the fields and woodlands as I set off on my way to my first gardening job of the day. The light made me feel so calm and peaceful, I was in awe of the silent beauty of the pure Autumnal sunlight. Every tree glowed a different shade of red, yellow, orange and gold…
The ground was coated in a thin layer of frost, the first of the year.. the sunlight made the ground sparkle. As I arrived at my garden I took a moment to take in my surroundings. The beautiful place that I am blessed to call my workplace is the most spectacular garden, surrounding a beautiful old manor house. The lawns glittered in the morning light, dots of colour just visible through the glare from plants still holding on to the last of the warmth and light of the year..
My job today was to finally do the Dahlias, to lift them, clean the tubers and store them safely over the cold winter months until its time to pot them up again….I hadn’t the heart to throw the fading blooms onto the compost heap so I decided to save several of the now very delicate Dahlia heads, contemplating how to photograph them in a way that justified their beauty…In the end I just lay them all out and held them, the contrast of petals brushing against the skin of my hands and forearms…Dahlias can perhaps feel like a fair bit of work to grow but they are so worth the effort in the end…
