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Although this could very well be a picture of me finding a new treasure at a favorite nursery, it's actually an illustration by David Catrow for a children's book called Plantzilla.

Monday, December 1, 2014

A Dusting of Snow

What does a teacher call snow on a weekend?  A waste of good snow!  However the little bit of snow that we got on Saturday wasn't enough for even a late start so it was kind of nice to enjoy watching it fall from the warmth of the house.

The wind was blowing as well so I didn't stay outside long.  Just enough time to take a few pictures and check out what the greenhouse looked like inside with a snow-covered roof. Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens' (Black Mondo Grass) looks like someone was a bit heavy handed with the confectioners sugar.


Chamaecyparis lawsoniana 'Van Pelt's blue'

View from the back porch.

The contorted filbert is still holding on to some leaves.  It's beegining to be a bit congested with little banches.  I'd better do some pruning this winter.

I was hoping that the leaves of this Acer japonica would drop before our next cold spell.  If they don't fall of naturally, they tend to turn brown and hang on all winter.

Evergreen all decorated for the holidays.

See amid the winter's snow a promise of new life!

the snow is mostly gone now but temperatures got down to 21 F. (-6 C) last night but are supposed to be a balmy 23 tonight.
Happy new week, new month, and beginning of Advent and keep warm!

29 comments:

  1. Our snow dusting melted this weekend, to be replaced by a layer of sleet and ice this morning. Blech.

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    1. Blech is right! I'm ready for spring and it's not even really winter yet.

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  2. Snow can be a nuisance but whilst they are around at least they look pretty

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    1. I love looking at snow but not so much having to drive in it.

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  3. It's nice to see the Camellia buds out there. I hope we both get lots of flowers on ours this winter!

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    1. Along with the Garrya tassels, these give me hope for spring.

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  4. I'm quite glad you all kept the flakes up that way and I didn't see any in my garden. They look better in yours.

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  5. I love the way a garden looks with just that dusting. It makes it seem so fresh. We have a few Korean maples and they do hold their leaves all through the winter, come snow and wind. At first I really disliked the look but now I enjoy the variation they give to the winter landscape. Really enjoyed these views of your garden all the blue objects and your wonderful pedestals.

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    1. Snow does make everything look clean. Glad you liked the views of my garden.

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  6. One of my Japanese maples is also hanging on to it's brown dead leafs. It didn't happen in previous winters, and I wonder what's up with that. The view of the back porch is magestic except the sad looking banana slime...

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    1. If the weather grows gradually colder and there are a few frosty nights with warmer days, the trees have a chance to harden off and gradually loose their leaves. [At the point where leaf stem meets twig or branch is an array of cells called the abscission layer. As autumn days shorten, this layer begins to choke off the veins that move water into the leaf and food into the tree. Once the leaf is completely choked off, the layer becomes dry and flakey and, through decomposition, detaches the leaf from the tree.] When temperatures are relatively mild and suddenly there is a freeze, the process is interrupted and leaves will hang on even though they're dry and brown.

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  7. Seldom do we get a demonstration like this that you are further north. None of the pretty white stuff here.

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    1. It is unusual as often you're a bit colder than we are in the winter and 10 degrees warmer in the summer.

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  8. Replies
    1. Oh come on Gerhard, you'd love a little dusting of snow in your garden...

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  9. No snow down here in Albany either but we got a bit of ice this morning from the freezing rain. Not nearly as pretty as your snow. I hope you're keeping warm.

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    1. Second freeze of the season already - yuk! We're keeping warm up this way; how about you?

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  10. We had the reverse here today - unseasonably balmy weather after some hard freezes and the first snow last week.

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    1. Unseasonably balmy sounds divine as we're getting another few days of lows in the low 20's and highs barely getting above freezing.

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  11. I think maple and other trees' hanging leaves added some charm to the snowy gardens. I remember last year's pictures, which looked almost as black and white. This time It's b&w plus splashes of the yellow and red.
    I like blue color popping here and there in your garden!

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    1. The leaves do make things look different. I'm glad you like the blue color; I seem to be attracted to it.

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  12. Snow looks so romantic. It's too bad it comes with extreme cold. (For thin-blooded Southern Californians, anything in the range of 60F or below is extreme cold.)

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    1. You're killing me (softly with your song.) Here people start breaking out the shorts and flip flops when it gets above 50. I guess it's what we are accustomed to. The first few winters here after moving from Alaska, I didn't wear a coat.

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  13. A question off the gardening subject but I just got my first digital camera and I took it outside yesterday to shoot a couple of snowy pictures and my lense fogged up any tips for me.

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    1. That happens when the camera goes from a cold to warm or warm to cold environment. The fog will eventually go away as it cools more. If you really can't wait, use a lens cleaning cloth to gently clean the lens. I always keep a uv filter on the lens to protect it.

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  14. Your dusting of snow looks very pretty and delicate :)

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  15. Thank you peter for answering my question. I start everyday with your blog. Weekends are sad ��

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  16. Glad you get into the balmy realm of 23F for a low...your amount of snow looks just right to highlight those camellias and other plants. After the most disjointed fall I've seen (part 1 early Aug, part 2 late Oct), I might welcome snow...unless it is one of those freak 1 ft dumps in April...

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Thanks so much for taking the time to comment! I love to hear your thoughts.