NO CHICKENS YET?

Spring is coming?

I was cutting back the privet at the back and chopping down the suckers from the damson trees and in the heart of the privet was an enormously long bramble (blackberry) bristling with thorns when a nasty bramble tentacle whipped across my face, well it was either that or I was attacked by a wild cat, or I was assaulted by R with the spaghetti server. 


More plum jam jarred and long tailed tits on the feeder along with the usual birds. No bramblings this year but there have been redwings and fieldfares in the trees. 




In the depths of the vegetable cupboard (we were spring cleaning the cupboards and throwing away anything that was more then five years out of date) and reorganising things, when I noticed this errant potato had escaped from the rack and was now desperately trying to grow. It was about the size of a small grape.

The pond at the lower end has been overflowing for a while - the ground had sunk somewhat. So I have been out, stripping the turf and rolling back the liner. Then I placed stone under the liner to raise it up. In the outlet there was a piece of wood to make the level higher which I removed prior to the work. This resulted in a rush of water down into the village - don't tell anyone not was me.

Which brings me on to a little about winter light and the way, in the morning the trees and shrubs are back-lit by the sun. And if they are frosted this only accentuates the effect.

And at this time of year, as we can see many miles to the east, we get spectacular sunrises, sometimes through a murk darkly -

 Sometimes with sun reflected on the wet sand of the bay and rook silhouetted in the trees -

 and sometimes making the whole sky glow, here with the beginnings of a sun pillar.

So to and early spring? - crocuses I put in in the autumnal finale flowering and opening (when the sun bothers to shine) and small irises in the lily pots half submerged by builders stuff. Then to cap it all we see primroses up on the top banking. A little bit of hope in the dark cold days.

Finally I would like to remember a special man who died last Monday - Alan Forsyth - businessman, writer, poet etc etc. He will be missed.