Well, for once, the weather is working with me.  It has been dry today and so I have been able to get on with more tidying up for the winter.  The job is almost done :).

I have found a few surprises as I tidied up.  One rose has decided to buck the trend and has gone for one last ditch attempt to flower.  Its buds look rather surprising against the lovely deep red berries of the Pyracantha.

There was also a Fuchsia defying the time of year.  It certainly was a sign of the times that I had to use my flash to be able to take photos at all, not what you really expect outdoors during the middle of the afternoon.

As you tidy up, lots of outstanding jobs become apparent, but there was one job that I almost forgot about.  As I prepared for the garden opening in June, I noticed that a couple of fence panels needed replacing.   To have had the job done then would have risked damaging the plants just before they were on show, so I put it on hold.  Luckily the panels are well protected from the vagaries of our weather as they are behind shrubs taller than them on my side of the fence and Leylandii on the other and so the fence is still standing – just!  I dare not risk them surviving any winter storms that may come our way, so the appointment has been made to get them replaced.  If the fence came down, the dogs might like the chance to explore our neighbours garden, but it would not be good for my state of mind!

You might want to go out and check your fences now – just in case.  If you have dogs, there is nothing worse than having a mad panic to get fence panels after a storm, just when everyone else is buying them too and they don’t understand why it is so important for your garden to be secure.