September: a sweet month that washes away the wearisome dog days of August with its down-at-heel trees and harsh light. Summer’s last hurrah before the mists and mellow fruitfulness of autumn overtake, sweeping all before it. Until recently, the joys of this season were seldom appreciated and the palette of available plants was small. Graham Thomas in his classic book, Perennial Garden Plants, lists only two echinacea and, astonishingly, just six miscanthus. The move towards naturalistic planting and the desire to squeeze more pleasure for longer periods from our gardens has led to a surge of interest in plants that perform in this season.
Rose Cottage, the garden of Paul Seaborne and his husband, Glenn Livingstone, is a wonderful advert for this season and its plants. Only 15 years old and set on heavy clay at the windswept foot of the
