Summer finally departed in a blaze of warm September glory to be replaced literally overnight by plummeting temperatures, misty-moisty mornings and windy rainy days.
But now, the warmth has returned.
Spring was late and cold but an excellent summer followed, resulting in some fine crops of fruits and berries such as elder, hawthorn, beechmast and late but welcome holly which augurs well for Christmas decorations.
Despite the annual leaf-miner moth affliction of horse chestnuts, conkers seem unaffected and there is also a good crop of acorns.
Most trees have their own special gall, caused by tiny wasps with a complex life cycle. In fact, oaks are attacked by over forty species of gall. Many are familiar including marble, oak apple, spangle and cherry but oaks have lived with most galls for millenia and can cope without ill effect.
However there is one insidious gall named knopper that only arrived in Britain forty years ago. At the time, scientists were concerned about the long-term effects of this ugly, sticky bright green and brown gall which somewhat resembles a shelled walnut.
Knopper galls attack developing acorns, smothering and retarding growth and eventually killing them (see photo).
Oddly, whereas one oak tree in a group could be badly affected with knopper galls others close by may be completely free of them.
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