THE GARDEN IN JANUARY

 

Some days ago I walked round the garden looking to see what signs of renewal there were. I found a few including clumps of primroses in flower. The odd looking item on the right hand side of this clump is one of those solar lights and this is the light collecting cell on the top.

 

 

This clump is at the bottom of the garden with dead leaves and what looks like some couch grass, too...

I love catmint and so do local cats. It's just beginning here but it's a bit early for it to start growing.

 

Gillian  brought me a planted planter as one part of my Christmas present - an innovative use of a a brass magazine rack  which has a row of pansies in the nearest compartment and primulas in the back compartment. It makes a bright spot of colour.

My next door neighbour's fence - again. After any particularly strong winds I walk the garden to see what's been done to the plants and/or hard structures. He doesn't and also isn't particularly prompt about repairing or moving the panels. Luckily this is behind the shed in the 'utility' area so there's nothing to ruin. Even so I hope it's not there for too long.

 I asked Gillian to come yesterday, a bright blue, sunny and 'warm' day, just to clear the sunflower husks from the path (she collected a barrow load) and cut the leaves from the hellebores. So far it's just the white/cream/greeny flowers coming through. The purple ones are usually a bit later in the year.

 

I blogged this sheep which lives on the surround of the pond a couple of years ago but it didn't have such a lovely green mossy overcoat at that time. It'll keep it warm when the snow comes....

I took some more photos, too - lilac is just coming into bud, globe thistle is sprouting well, about 12" high, lots of daffs poking through, several inches tall plus clumps of self sown snowdrops showing through. The Comtesse de Bouchard clematis had several tufts of leaves, too, but that's been cut back so all gone for now.

 

 

There are lots of long tailed tits this year and though they are usually in bunches of noisy chatterers it's a case of get them while you can, they don't hang about! Tiny little birds with much longer tails than the other tit family members.

 

I'm having yet another unexplained problem this time with Browsing for photos - where has it gone to??? Will it return lo its own??? Don't be silly!!!