Was that Autumn? (2014)

Lori...I can just picture you trudging up that hill and hauling out the dead logs. You have so much energy and determination! Keep up the good work. I have a little 'arrangement' project to finish myself today...must get that done. Your temps. Scare me. Don't know how I'd handle 13 to minus 26! The snow pics. Are beautiful. My vote is for white light. X

Thanks Karen. noted: one for white. lol....

:)

How picturesque. I love the cedars and the spruce draped in snow. I think they like it too. Nice blog.

Thanks Bathgate. You must be experiencing some of this changeable weather too? I was really shocked by the "Lake effect" snow they had in Buffalo.

Yes, it's been unusually cold and we don't normally get snow before Thanksgiving - then again I don't know what "normal" is anymore, lol! Yes Buffalo really got buried quite unexpectedly. The "lake effect" snow was in addition to the snow storm - over 6 feet total.

Lori your second pic is so beautiful - it would make a lovely Christmas card. Yes, white light would be lovely. The way you tackle all your hard work is an inspiration. Its hard for us in the UK to think what those low temps must be like.

Like your deck xmas arrangement, do you have any holly on your land? Is that the same Greater Spotted as the one we get here? Yes i always feel so privileged this time of year to be inside a warm house with plenty of food and comfort, so lucky...
We just had our first touch of frost last night, much scraping of car windows in the morning!
Ps. Definite vote for white too

I've experience a "dump" of snow like that only twice. In Cornwall, Ontario...back in the "oughts" and in Muskoka, waaaay back in the '60s. In Cornwall we had 61 inches in 12 hours, and in Muskoka it was a little over 3 ft. I think both were "lake effect" events. At such times the temperatures are always moderate (just below freezing) but followed by a deep freeze. Today temperatures are on the rollercoaster...AGAIN. Above freezing with sleet in the eastern end of the Province while we bask in single digit minuses!
Although I would like to have some hollies it's too cold here; and that no so much the severe temps, as the length of time spent in severe temps. April kills off a lot of less hardy plants. Any bushes which produce berries are usually stripped by the birds before the snow flies. Would love some nice hollies but alas...not meant to be. Have decided that the rule of the wild has to be my guide....if it will grow in the wild...it will grow in my garden.
"Outside the gust is driving past"... love that line because it's cozy to sit by a nice fire with something hot to drink and a good book...or a seed catalogue..and snooze, or dream about spring. we are indeed, lucky!

I love anything with berries. Hollies are great but so are the junipers with deep blue berries in abundance. I'm with you as far as sitting by the fire with - my preference hot apple pie with a cup of tea or homemade soup.

Agree about the Junipers! love the spicy smell of the berries. I have only two true junipers tucked away in a corner of the clearing and almost overtaken by poplar seedlings. I took a weed whipper to the seedlings last summer and the junipers seem to be recovering. clearing "brush" is a never ending job...I have two huge ash trees that have populated the verges with their seedlings and the only way to get rid of them is to cut the tree and pull the roots. I don't like to disturb the thin soil so I prefer to just cut, and cut, and cut....It's become a spring time ritual.

wow, sounds like quite a work out you get keeping after those seedlings. You must have a good area for growing things. I only have two junipers and that's enough for me. Mine are tall and narrow and don't take up much real estate. I rarely have a problem with seedlings either. I think the birds eat up the berries before any of them can germinate.

LOL...ash seedlings are the bane of my existence. was up on the hill this morning cutting some more deadfalls. I'm hoping that I can clear enough of the brush out that the wildflowers and interesting shrubs will have a chance to come along.

I would call a seed company and order something like a 50lb sack of wild flower seeds - whatever kind you like - and just scatter them everywhere. Some of the box stores (Home Depot) sells them in bulk.

I have two lovely little shrub/trees Dirca pelustris, or Leatherwood which I'm hoping to move early next spring. It has other names Dirca des marais, in French, wicopy and jiibegob (Ojibway), also called Moosewood...it has yellow leathery bark which was used to make cordage at one time. It's quite a sight in the spring when it blooms and I have found a small group of them (five individuals) of which I hope to bring two down nearer to the edge of the forest. Was also thinking about buying an ounce of foxglove seeds to sow in the same area. I have seen the wildflower mixes and have a Richter's Catalogue (herb seeds). Richters sell Plug Packs too but I think I'd rather start seeds as the plants I've bought from them didn't impress me with their hardiness, and here, that's key. The last couple of seasons I've tried to make lists of the wild herbs and wildflowers that are abundant. We have 8 acres and the range of vegetation is astonishing.

Sounds like you have it totally under control and that's awesome. I look forward to seeing the results. The Leatherwood sounds very interesting. Would love to see a pic or two. I have an Allegheny Viburum which puts out huge clusters of shiny red berries every summer. It's also called Leatherleaf and certainly lives up to its namesake.

LOL...any control is a complete illusion, Bathgate! I'm trying, but you know how nature is. She trumps all my efforts, it seems. If I'm smart and I find out one of her secrets, only then will she let me exploit her. The leatherwood is a good example. I believe I have some pics of the blossom and the golden yellow bark in early spring. will have to search them out and do a short blog about it. The Allegheny Viburnum you mentioned sounds very interesting. I have used Leatherleaf in floral arrangements.
I wonder if it would survive our winters. I really like the idea of those glorious berries!