I spent Friday shifting piles of heavy turf from the top lawn to a smart new turf stack in the meadow – the opening salvo for our winter development project plan – of which more later. A very strenuous task but once I got going it felt good and was made all the more enjoyable by the strong smell of candyfloss, or toffee apples, which drifted across the garden. It was of course the Katsura tree, or Cercidiphyllum japonicum, which releases stored sugars as the leaves turn and fall, spreading its warm, sweet scent in the late summer sunshine. 
I have never grown Asters before. There’s no reason, it’s just not a genus that has crossed my plant purchase radar. But in the way of more traditional open gardens, as this one has been, we have a bed with at least four different varieties. I particularly like Harrington’s Pink but I forgot to take a picture so you will have to wait for that.
The apple crop is maturing nicely, though I have little confidence in some of the variety names. The tree labelled Spartan probably is, but the fruit is far sweeter and crisper than the tart, under-ripe fruit that I remember from my youth. The tree labelled Discovery is most assuredly not – it looks like another Spartan. The other ‘eater’ is listed as James Grieve, but even this seems unlikely. I compared it with fruit from the demonstration orchard at Reaseheath College and it seems more like Winter Gem. One tree’s identity is beyond dispute – Egremont Russet, and a joy it is indeed. The two cookers on the right are Monarch and Bramley.
My world changes tomorrow – the nursery closes for the winter and our youngest goes to university. At the ripe young age of 46 and 43 respectively we will be empty-nesters (OK, so I’m the eldest). Funny really, when I was 25 many of my then friends were having kids, yet now it seems that all my contemporaries have children under 10 and are coping with secondary and even primary school decisions. I feel marked as ‘old’ – I must be with two University-aged daughters – and yet liberated and newly young, returned to a state I barely remember (for it was very short lived indeed) of blissful coupledom before children came along. Lucy Mangan puts it far better in today’s Guardian – something about an eery silence, rampant sex and painting the departed son’s bedroom marshmallow pink ‘because I can’. Well, one out of three isn’t bad….
3 Responses to “Candyfloss, Asters and apples”
Hi Sue – this is an invitation to join the Garden Bloggers Retro carnival. I don’t know if you’ve ever come across the concept of a Blog carnival – if not I’ve explained it in detail on my site today (Oct 1). But basically the idea is to revive an old post which you think is worth rereading, or which you think new readers might enjoy. Send me the link to the post, and in November I’ll publish a series of posts describing and linking to all the posts people have nominated.
I hope you’ll join in and we have a fun carnival!
Sue
Glad your enjoying your freedom !! We’ve got one at Uni and one still at Primary school (for 3 more years) and lots in between….I’ve had 16 yrs of parents evening with another 8 yrs at least…such is life….
So it’ll be a while before we can paint the bedroom pink and other such activities, although I suppose some are responsible for it !!
Elaine – that’s why your ‘Supermum’ moniker is entirely appropriate! 2 was plenty for me…..