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Post by whollygoats on Nov 21, 2020 23:53:48 GMT
So, I noticed today that the Japanese snowbell along the Ho Chi Minh trail is nearly naked of leaves. I noticed this because I was indoors looking out the upstairs western windows, in to the tree itself. Murray brought it to my attetion. It is the first time I noticed that there is a bird's nest in the tree almost directly opposite the one window from which I keep the blinds raised so the felines have 'treevee'.
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Post by Mari on Nov 22, 2020 9:10:06 GMT
My snowball tree has been blooming for the past two weeks or so. It usually blooms later in the year.
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Post by whollygoats on Nov 22, 2020 18:11:05 GMT
Negative reinforcement for leaf raking: Two days, so far, of lower back pain. Who knew? There is shoulder and upper arm ache, as well, but that was expected.
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Post by whollygoats on Nov 25, 2020 22:37:54 GMT
A quick pained hobble about the garden shows that most leaves are down. The kousa and the maple will be denuded in the next wind storm of any note.
The drear is distinctly here.
Time to up the D3 dosage.
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Post by whollygoats on Dec 8, 2020 18:18:12 GMT
All the trees are bare, and the sky is....clear and cold.
Today, I had a troop of robins visit. American robins are about three times the size of Brit robins. And, they are really thrushes. Anyway, I grew up hearing about 'the first robin of spring' as some kind of clarion announcement. Well, these suckers are confused. They were reasonably courteous, though.
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Post by JoeP on Dec 8, 2020 19:35:03 GMT
Indeed. Turdus migratorius.
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Post by whollygoats on Dec 8, 2020 20:17:11 GMT
Such an endearing Linnean term.
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Post by Moose on Dec 9, 2020 2:04:09 GMT
Robins here are specifically associated with Christmas. I've not seen one for years tho
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Post by Kye on Dec 9, 2020 2:09:11 GMT
There are no robins around here at Christmas time. They leave for the winter, and in fact one of the first signs of spring is when you see the first robin.
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Post by whollygoats on Dec 9, 2020 3:52:38 GMT
I haven't seen robins for some time. They were a staple of my youth, being around nearly year round, albeit more scarce in winter months.
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Post by JoeP on Dec 9, 2020 8:49:00 GMT
Robins here are specifically associated with Christmas. I've not seen one for years tho Lots around here
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Post by ceptimus on Dec 10, 2020 2:54:40 GMT
I had my car up on axle stands on my drive earlier this year. I crawled underneath and was flat on my back unscrewing the oil drain plug when a robin flew underneath my car, right past my head. He did it again later when I was back underneath refitting the plug after the oil had drained.
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Post by JoeP on Dec 10, 2020 10:07:46 GMT
Obviously assumed you were gardening and unearthing worms for him.
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Post by whollygoats on Dec 11, 2020 0:24:07 GMT
They can get quite forward when soil is being overturned.
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Post by ceptimus on Dec 20, 2020 13:42:47 GMT
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Post by JoeP on Dec 20, 2020 19:44:46 GMT
^ Blue skies. Obviously not taken in Cumbria
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Post by whollygoats on Dec 24, 2020 1:29:19 GMT
Need one go to the Scillys to get blue skies and sun in the UK?
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Post by whollygoats on Dec 31, 2020 17:46:15 GMT
Hogmanay in the garden is cool, damp, and overcast. For some reason, flocks of turdus migratorius are foremost. I haven't seen them for months and now they are here in crowds.
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Post by Mari on Jan 1, 2021 7:09:15 GMT
We've got frost at nights. How is it at your place ?
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Post by whollygoats on Jan 1, 2021 14:58:07 GMT
Occasional frosty nights, particularly if it is clear, but it usually hovers at just above freezing, precipitation or not.
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Post by Mari on Jan 2, 2021 17:42:52 GMT
I want to plant our small christmas tree, but figured id better wait till March of i want it to survive.
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Post by whollygoats on Jan 2, 2021 20:50:50 GMT
Actually, any time now would be good for tree planting. March is actually late in the tree-planting season, but it will likely be warmer then.
Me? I'm wondering when the seed catalogs go out.
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Post by JoeP on Jan 2, 2021 23:50:37 GMT
I'm thinking that a spruce or pine or whatever tree is, by definition, going to survive frosts! But would it need to be "hardened off" (put outside daytime only, in its pot) before planting properly? Or is that not a consideration for trees?
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Post by whollygoats on Jan 3, 2021 0:51:28 GMT
Well, even most deciduous trees are dormant, so the whole 'hardening off' thing is unnecessary unless it is some kind of sub-tropical or tropical species.
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Post by Mari on Jan 4, 2021 16:20:19 GMT
Hmm, guess I'll plant it soon after all. I thought the roots might freeze if it hadn't had time to settle before a frost or something.
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Post by whollygoats on Jan 4, 2021 19:39:21 GMT
Hmm, guess I'll plant it soon after all. I thought the roots might freeze if it hadn't had time to settle before a frost or something. Unless you have an unusually protracted and deep freeze, you have nothing to worry about, as soil is a great insulator.
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Post by whollygoats on Jan 10, 2021 1:22:40 GMT
THE FIRST BLOOM OF THE NEW YEAR!
A white primrose in on the slope of the western front, next to the front steps. I noticed it when I went out for groceries early this morning.
Lots of new crocus shoots, too.
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Post by Mari on Jan 10, 2021 8:15:28 GMT
That's really early! We're not even halfway through winter!
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Post by whollygoats on Jan 11, 2021 16:26:30 GMT
Sure we are...halfway through winter was the Solstice.
Remember, the equinoxes and solstices are the peaks of their respective seasons, not the beginnings.
Groundhog's Day (February 2) has a claim to the first day of spring, and All Hallows (November 1) to the first day of winter.
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Post by Mari on Jan 15, 2021 12:33:48 GMT
Meteorologically speaking you mean? From what I learned spring starts on March 21st. Still, I wouldn't expect crocii till at least February.
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