Snowtime

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It’s quite difficult to remember that a few weeks ago I was in the balmy, if very damp, tropics enjoying the abundant foliage and flowers of a tropical garden (see earlier blog). Back home, it’s c-c-cold and pretty dreary. But, at lunch time today we had a sprinkling of snow, and the garden was transformed.

The day began with a spectacular sun rise. These seem to be quite common at this time of year, when the sun rises in a very different location from its summer position, and the now bare trees are dramatically silhouetted against the orange and blue sky, as shown in this pix.

In the garden, the teasel is still standing erect, and the seed heads have been dusted with snow, the effect of which makes me pleased that I didn’t demolish the plant during a bout of tidying up before I went to Oz.

Meawhile, in the border, the sedum is now nicely dusted with snow, and the palm is looking like a bit of the tropics completely lost in an alien climate!

By contrast, the skimmia looks both more at home and distinctly seasonal. Who needs holly berries with these red flowers on show?

Even the elaeagnus looks at home, with its sunny foliage frosted with snow. And the hellebore in the border is well covered, too.

So, I suppose what this shows is that even in winter there are some fleeting pleasures to be had in the garden, although I must confess that they are best enjoyed from the warmth of the house rather than the distinctly seasonal cold of the garden! And, to anyone reading this blog, best wishes for the festive season (with some nice gardening gifts, perhaps?) and the year ahead.

• 17 Dec, 2010
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