End of the Year

As I write these words, we have been encompassed by a blanket of fog for three days. Our world has resembled a painting by John Atkinson Grimshaw; every surface glistening damp with moisture, droplets hanging seemingly eternally - finally bouncing from one leaf or branch, a plethora of leaf fall cushioning the final decent. 

This year has been the wettest, dankest, most miserable year I have known. Spring seemed to have slipped into summer, summer into autumn, without any discernible difference. 

It has been a mixed year in the garden. Tomatoes, courgettes and soft fruit struggled due to the lack of any real warmth during the summer, leading to poor fruiting and ripening. 

But some crops performed really well. The shallots never threatened to bolt, thus producing a bumper harvest. Beetroot, carrots and potatoes - although later than normal - soaked up the rain with gusto. 

The main problem this year has been slugs and snails. Everyone I speak to has suffered at the hands, or rather teeth, of these pesky molluscs. We counteract this by starting everything off in modules or pots, and creating barriers using sharp grit. Beer traps also can be surprisingly effective. 

As the end of this year fast approaches, more storms and wet weather is forecast. But the weather concerns us gardeners far more than it concerns the garden. The garden stoically endures everything. It may not have been a great year in the garden, but nature always gives you another chance next year. 

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