Officially autumn

As a child I loved the conker season. Spotting the burnished brown shells glistening in the leaves.

Rose hips are another fond memory, especially in the form of rose hip syrup. During the Second World War people were encouraged to take it as a vitamin supplement. I still remember the delight of being given spoonfuls of this as a child when I had a cold.

I didn't realise until recently that Kentish cob nuts are actually hazelnuts. As I grew up in Cheshire they were a mystery to me until I moved to London.