Category Archives: Trees

European Mistletoe

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While looking around the garden for materials for a wreath recently, I picked up a large pine twig that I thought I could perhaps use, and found this….

Mistletoe is visible in the crowns of the pine trees in our woods…. right at the tops where nobody can reach or see it properly. And I had never seen how it actually attaches itself to the tree.
Well, now I can inspect it up close. What a revelation!

This mistletoe growing on the pine trees is Viscum album subsp. austriacum. It really does seem to be a part of its host tree, growing out of the wood of the pine and not simply attaching itself like ivy does.

I wonder if you have seen this before? Or perhaps with some other kind of parasitic plant?

I found it fascinating. Nature never ceases to amaze me.

December Snow

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We had heavy snowfall at the beginning of the month, with over a foot of fresh powdery snow falling on already frozen snow and ice from the week before. I took so many photos of the garden and trees as it was quite magical, despite the inconvenience of it! So I am sharing some of these images today in a slideshow. Enjoy!

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In a Vase on Monday: Respecting my Elders

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I have learned to respect my elders… that is, my elder trees, as custom requires. Yes, did you know it is better to ask an elder tree (for permission/forgiveness?) before you cut it?

In folklore, the black elder (Sambucus nigra) is associated with magic and witches. On the one hand it may be a witch in disguise, and on the other hand it is said to protect from evil spirits. It is bad luck to cut it, and not a good idea to use it as firewood. And if you fall asleep under it, you may never wake up…. 😮 However, the red elder (Sambucus racemosa) does not have any of these myths attached to it as far as I know. Nonetheless, just to be on the safe side, I did ask our tree if it wouldn’t mind before snipping a small sprig for my vase this week. 😉

Red Elder (Sambucus racemosa)

Red Elder is quite different to the black, and the leaves are the colour of bronze when they first appear, turning green later. In addition, the round buds appear at the same time as the first leaves. It is quite a stunning plant at this time of year, but blends into the hedgerows later on.

I chose my bronze ikebana vase, with a large florist’s frog in the base to fix the stems. I added some Hellebores at the base, also a plant with dark magic and properties attached to it.

And as a thank you to everyone who commented on my last post ‘Defending Forsythia’, supporting my defence of this cheerful spring-flowering shrub, a sprig of yellow Forsythia to lighten things up a bit! 😃

Thanks to Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for encouraging us to find vase materials in our gardens each week to share.

Happy gardening!

 

Into the New Year

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As I write it is still the last day of the year and we had some lovely warm sunshine today: 13°C!

So to ring out the old year here are a few pictures of my leisurely wander around the garden with Anouk this morning.

The blue sky and sunshine was a real treat…

This is the corner Anouk likes to inspect first every morning, as the hares come through the fence there…

Still a few rose hips left in the hedge…

And some morning mist across the meadow beyond our fence…

Anouk, checking for mice…

The buzzards often sit on the perches first thing to warm their wings in the sun… we put up several of these to encourage the birds of prey to help keep the mice population down.

The hellebores are in bud!

 

Can she smell Spring? (No, probably deer or hares!)

Wishing you all the very best for the new gardening year. Health, happiness and lots of flowers!

Happy New Year!

 

In a Vase on Monday: The Unusual…

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We had terrible gales last week and one of our tall willowy willows was nearly uprooted. As there were fresh shoots at the base of the trunk we decided drastic measures were in order…

…and the top was lopped off!

My Man of Many Talents hated to see the glorious green flowers, smothered in bees, go onto the compost heap and put them in the nearest container he could find.

😃

 

In case you are wondering, it is a pile driver for ramming posts into the ground. Turned upside down it served as a heavy and relatively stable vase!

What surprised us both was the delicious scent coming from the flowers.

I narrowed it down to three, but we were so taken by this strange vase that we both took loads of photos!

I am happy to be joining Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for her Monday meme again and hope you will pop over to see her vase today.