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The free blackberries along Richmond paths are ripe now

The free blackberries along Richmond paths are ripe now, hanging in thick clusters wherever the hedgerows have been left to run a little wild. You will find them on most canal-side walks, along the Thames Path between Petersham and Ham, and in the quieter corners of Bushy Park where the brambles tangle themselves into the fence lines.

The fruit is at its best in early September, before the wasps claim too much of it. Pick only what grows above waist height: dog walkers know why. Bring a container with a lid. The berries stain everything.

Some hedges give dark, sweet fruit. Others offer smaller, sharper berries better suited to crumbles than eating raw. You learn which is which by returning each year to the same stretch of path.

The Romans brought cultivated blackberries to Britain, but the wild ones were here long before that. They seed themselves wherever birds perch. No one plants them. No one tends them. They simply appear, year after year, and fruit whether you notice or not.

September does not wait.

Do you have a favourite hedgerow spot? Share it in the comments below.

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The first leaves turning in Richmond gardens

The first leaves turning in Richmond gardens signal autumn’s arrival with quiet certainty. Horse chestnuts at Marble Hill Park show yellow edges. Lime trees along the towpath glow amber in late afternoon light. The change creeps in slowly, then all at once. You notice it first in the morning. Shadows stretch longer across the lawn. […]

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The last tomatoes in Richmond gardens are coming indoors

The last tomatoes in Richmond gardens are coming indoors now, bundled in newspaper or lined up on kitchen windowsills. The green ones will never see another warm day outdoors. But they will ripen. Slowly, reluctantly, they turn from hard jade to blushing orange to full, soft red. You pick them before the first frost. That […]

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Dahlias and asters keep Richmond gardens ablaze into autumn

Dahlias and asters in Richmond gardens are carrying the colour into autumn just as the roses fade and the apples ripen overhead. These are the workhorses of the border when everything else has given up. Dahlias throw out blooms until the first frost catches them. The dinner-plate varieties look slightly absurd, like someone glued tissue […]

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The garden in Richmond turns as the first chill arrives

The garden in Richmond turns as the first chill arrives. You notice it first thing, stepping out with tea in hand. The air has weight now. It sits differently on your skin. The change is everywhere once you look. Apples hang heavy on the branch, their skins taut and ready. Touch one and it comes […]

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Sowing for spring in Richmond gardens starts now

Sowing for spring in Richmond gardens starts now, while the apple harvest still fills kitchen bowls. You might think the growing year winds down in autumn, but gardeners know better. October is when next year begins. Tulip bulbs, alliums, crocuses: they all want to go in before the first frosts. The soil is still warm […]

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The Bench

A different conversation about Richmond, every day.