Pages

Sunday 27 January 2013

Snowdrops

To me, February has often felt to be a rather 'flat and black' month. If there has been snow then the ground level vegetation lies flattened against the wet earth and fallen leaves form carpets of black rotting matter. This year, a mild spell at the beginning of January gave way to a period of cold snowy weather which has now dramatically gone and given way, almost overnight, to much warmer conditions so the ice and snow has virtually disappeared.

I am sitting amongst a patch of creaking hawthorns on Pegsdon Hill sheltering from the blustery wind. There is almost a gale blowing up here on the hill with only a breeze further down. Looking out over the flatlands of southern Bedfordshire patches of sunlight are appearing in the haze and a blueness is clearing the clouds away above me.

New spring life is visible. I've passed clumps of snowdrops just begging to open along the roadsides. Wild arum leaves and dog's mercury are pushing their way up into the sunlight and elder leaves are appearing too. I passed a garden full of the yellow flowers of winter aconite and I wonder if this February will be more alive this year.

Later in the afternoon I sat in the summerhouse where it felt quite warm in the sunshine. The garden is quite sheltered from the wind and it felt very Spring-like as I sat there after pruning a few of the shrubs and clearing up a little. Daffodil bulbs are just beginning to break thought the surface of some tubs I have planted up.

No comments: