Joys of Winter

Went out with a hedge cutter
To trim the Golden Bush
That is leaning at an angle now
After that wind hit it smack.
But it rained
So the hedge cutter went away and I
Went out with a rake
And a wheelbarrow and a bucket –
Soon filled respectively with dead fern
And stems and soggy grass
And blown off twigs of a half dead
Bird cherry that blossoms each year
From its dead half
With honeysuckle, holly, and cowberry,
And sometimes, in summer, in the middle of that
With eggs laid by a sunbathing hen.

Lovely bagitha We've lost a willow, but the birds' cherry tree is still standing, thanks to being tethered by rope and anchored by concrete blocks.

Lovely poems, both of you. Glad you and bloshy cat are in good shape, super.

Annobel

Jess.... very late reply.... when I learn how to do it!

Jess... I think I've done it, can't manage the photos tho yet!

so you have.
there are lots of LBjs that are hard to identify. warblers for instance... so useful catchall term.
Welcome Back super
Oh the red kites are wonderful. They are carrion eaters I believe so unlikely to attack LBJs . But if people teach them to associate food with proximity of humans they will be a nuisance . Like gulls are in some places. I saw one fly past and nick a sandwich out of a girl's hand not so long ago in NSW. Tourists think they are cute and feed them.
I have seen them to the north, south and west of here, but still hoping they will hit town, or at least come over to say hello...

The rhododendrons, camellias and azaleas in the garden are looking very glossy and perky.The camellias last year were looking very sick and yellow-leaved. Now, lots of buds and no yellow. I'm glad I took good advice and gave them a shot of ericaceous fertilizer. Unless there's a dramatic change in the weather, it won't be long before I see the flowers on rhododendron praecox.

I've heard of dementia praecox but not rhododendron! My stupid cams are in full flower.(silly things)

I do have the latter, but hope not the former. Oh, of course, I'm too lod to have that, I suppose!

.?lod?

What does that prove? OLD OLD OLD!

Tee hee!

Snowdrops
Fragile yet strong
Nod their pearly heads
As if to say -
Look!
Here we are again.
Ancient trees
Cast to the ground
By vicious storm
Have spent their long-lived days
And rest in peace.
Purple heather
Clustered cushions
Embraced by crevices in
Razored rocks.
Tight buds
Keep their secret safe
And wait for Springtime's curtain-call.

What lovely visual images, super. I specially like the alliterative 'razored rocks' - gives both sound and picture.

Winter hasn't touched our garden here yet here in the west midlands., we still have roses in bud and garden hardy fushias still have leaves on them by now the leaves should have all dropped off from the cold .

super
As I write this I am looking out at 2 large 'bushes' of wall flowers which have been flowering non-stop since last spring; the lavender only stopped flowering just before Christmas and a fuschia planted in November, is still covered in flowers - this is the East of Scotland - what 's happening?

Beautiful super. I adore snowdrops.

Have you got snowdrops already, super? Lucky you! Ours haven't even popped their leaves up yet, though I have detected some daffodil leaves in the last week. Also wild iris leaves are beginning to show. Our garden is 'behaving' completely as I would expect it to behave in winter so I'm amazed at all the stories of unusual things in other people's gardens. I do live further north than most people (including supernana, by a little bit), and our garden iis on a north-east facing slope. Maybe we just live in an "odd pocket"! Mind you, we knew that already because plants only thirty metres down the hill from us flower a week or two earlier than ours do every year. I knew altitude made a difference, but it's really surprising how much difference it makes.

Guess we should start a joys of spring thread soon.

Me too Butter A lane nearby will have banks of violets in the spring - my number one favourite wild flower.
Gally Annika Your gardens sound amazing. Here on the rugged west coast, we've had far too much torrential rain, wayward wind and salty sea spray. 'Though nature still manages to put on a marvellous show once calm is restored.
Annobel

Snowdrops doing well here in South Manchester, buds on the blue
berry bushes, and the fruit trees are showing signs of life.

Just checked my year book where I record such things, and the earliest we've had snowdrops here so far (in five Januaries) is 26 January (in 2009). In our Oxfordshire garden the earliest was 7 January. Does anyone else keep records for naturescalendar.org.uk?

Gally, we still have geraniums budding and flowering! Considering you're right on the North Sea coast, I think you're doing very well!

bagitha Thank goodness you're okay. I was beginning to worry. Have trawled through a host of forums and suddenly, here you are. Goody!

greenangel, my geraniums are still flowering, although looking slightly yellow around the edges as it's been so wet here recently. Thinking of bringing the best of them in to get them dried out and to let them have a rest. They must be exhausted, poor things!

Bagitha - like the idea of a Joys of Spring thread.