Despite the cold, this hardy shrub reliably survives and flowers. Witch hazel, or hamamelis mollis, has a subtle scent that will remind you, if you are a certain age, of that hanky you were given to dab on a bruise! This species is both useful and beautiful. I’ve featured it here before, but I somehow don’t get tired of it…
We have some colour again, at last! Today, I found these dwarf cyclamen in flower, which cheered me up a bit. Besides anything else, I love all purple flowers, and these look so wonderfully delicate, even though they are actually quite hardy, and come up year after year. Nearby, there are some narcissi or daffodil shoots, but we shall have to wait patiently for the flowers…
And so once again, it’s the time for snowdrops. I’m always glad to see them because they seem like a promise of a spring to come. They bring their special beauty, just when everywhere tends to look a bit drab. The fact that the weather has been mostly quite mild, and so they came at a time of rain, rather than snow, makes them no less welcome!
December again, already…! I noticed how much of this there was in an old apple tree I have. Somehow, it’s strange to think of mistletoe as a parasitic plant; there’s no such thing as a mistletoe tree!
Until fairly recently, mistletoe was considered to be little more than a pest that damaged the host tree (other than its links with Christmas time!) but it does, in fact, make a positive ecological contribution.
At this time of year, although there are lots of wild fruits and berries, there are not so many other exciting plants to look at. This one, however, is of note – the silk tassel bush, or Garrya elliptica. Its stunning catkins last into the winter. Today, they caught my eye by the light of the morning sun.
And today, a further harbinger of spring: hazel catkins. It seems, in a way, strange to think of these being a step towards hazelnuts. But hey, there’s all spring and summer first!
Just today, I found this advance on last week. It seems all the more like spring being not far away. There’s definitely something about flowers that typifies the triumph of gentleness in adversity. Three days of sleety rain didn’t stop these crocuses from putting in an appearance!
Yes, it’s that time of year again – almost spring! I’ve always loved snowdrops, and I probably post a picture a bit like this every year. This time, I’ve given you the whole frame – the image hasn’t been cropped after capture. Also, this picture was taken with a prime (fixed focal length) lens, actually a 100mm macro.
By the time I arrived to take this shot, the winter afternoon light was already fading. I wound up the ISO setting to 3200, selected f/5 and shot at 1/15 of a second – relying on a dose of help from the camera’s shake reduction system!
I’m mentioning this as an example of what I’ve tried to explain before: newer and more expensive equipment won’t improve your skill as a photographer, but what it can do is extend your scope. One particular improvement noticeable on recent camera models, both DSLRs and others, is that good image quality is attainable when using high iso speeds – a great advantage in low light conditions!
The continued erratic weather patterns are still giving us surprises; I found this flowering currant in bloom just today. It seems that in winter these days, we aren’t left entirely without flowers, even though there are sometimes very few. I have a few dianthus blooms and winter pansies braving the cold!
Witch hazel, or hamamelis mollis is one of the lovely shrubs that flower in winter. This one is in my dad’s garden; the flowers have a characteristic sweet scent. A very cheering sight on a dull winter day, and actually quite easy to grow.
