Friday 13 April 2012

Time Off



 Ash Tree Buds Bursting Open

Sometimes life gets in the way of blogging. I've had a few days away from the computer, and it felt good. The man - or woman ? - who said  'stop and smell the flowers' had the right idea. Not that I've done so - the only plant perfuming the air at the moment is the yellow broom; the smell hits me every time I step outside the back door. It's impossible to take a clear picture of this shimmering, golden confection, you'll have to be satisfied with a fuzzy one. Better still, go out and find a bush yourselves. You can't miss them, they're the ones that are alive with the sound of bumble bees.


Genista (yellow broom)


There are jewels to be found in the garden. If you get down to their level, tulips bathed in clear April sun become light, delicate, almost diaphanous gems. A lot of  plants are still very tentative around here, April is only the beginning of spring, but bulbs are happy to bloom full steam ahead; their life span is too short for ladylike reticence.



Gardener and I have been hard at it. It's now or never if we want to control overabundant new growth of wanted and unwanted inhabitants. Warmer days and a few very welcome showers have stimulated friend and foe alike to stir and stretch and test the air.

"Hey, Mrs. W., come and have a look. Is that a plant you want?" Gardener has learned to be a little more careful lately.  He also invented a few new words. He decided that the lawn, which is mainly moss now and has very little grass - most un-English - would be a pain to 'scattify'. "Besides", he said, "at least moss is always green and doesn't need cutting all the time." He is right. I don't mind at all that I don't have an English lawn.



I also found time to go down to the river and watch the randy drakes belabour the long-suffering dilly-ducks. Three of them went after one poor bedraggled female at the same time, quacking and blustering and puffing themselves up, all of them trying to climb on and stay on long enough to make sure that any offspring would carry their DNA. The poor dillies disappeared under the weight, squashed flat and highly indignant when they finally emerged again, making for the safety of the flowing river at speed.

This drake kept a beady eye in all directions, he wasn't going to let any rivals steal a march on him.



It's April and there are showers. Badly needed showers. I took the time to follow the clouds, from the brightest blue skies to dark storm clouds, turned sulphur yellow by piercing shafts of sun.



Figures in chiaroscuro against the late afternoon sky.



It was nice to take time off from the computer, I might do it again.



PS: For those of you who have mentioned the yellow broom which is colonising your landscapes:
that's not broom, it must be gorse, a different shrub; wild and prolifically self-seeding, it could be a pest. Yellow broom (genista) is a garden plant without prickles and well-behaved.



62 comments:

  1. We've been away, so I had time off from the computer as well, and I also survived.
    Almost didn't survive the flight home. Well, that's an exaggeration, but it was awful. Or, rather, I was awful, the flight wasn't.
    Am still in rough shape, but your posts about your garden are always wonderful, guaranteed to make me smile.
    Thanks!
    K

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  2. What a beautiful "wander" through spring! Sigh. PS Breaks are always good...but don't do it for too long...we would miss you.

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  3. Look at all those blossoms! Gorgeous.

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  4. You don't have a garden. You have a park.

    I love your description of that golden confection with the sound of bumblebees :)

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  5. wow you have a beautiful garden...i would have a hard time blogging and not smelling the roses there...smiles...

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  6. I love broom, all of the color of gorse, without the prickles. Wild Broom here is barely fragrant. Enjoy yours on my behalf please:) (Horrible fire hazard once it dries)

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  7. How absolutely enchanting. Thank you so much for these beauties. I am really happy that you have been able to get out into the garden too.

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  8. Scattify. What a brilliant word! The last I know to come up with such fine words was Shakespeare. As for taking time off from the computer (particularly in spring!), I endorse it! Go forth! BUT you must promise to come back and tell us more of what you find. The photographs are splendid, splendid, and you are SO right about the light on the tulips.

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  9. So beautiful! And inspiring, too. I always love to look at where you live, what you do with your lovely garden. Thank you for sharing this.

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  10. You've been productive while away, and I sure enjoy your spring photos. Sometimes, no computer is a relief for several days. (Then I start wondering what everyone is up to...)

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  11. I have found in recent months that in order to get more accomplished, I simply must distance myself from the laptop...that is just the way it is. When you return, it is feeling refreshed...

    The Yellow Broom is stunning - off to check out what gardening zones it requires...I suspect we are too wintery here.

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  12. I missed you as did dozens of others obviously! I posted recently on something very similar on my 'Room' blog. It is good to take a break from everything that can be too habit forming.

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  13. When you come back with beautiful words an imagery like this, we will happily let you! Stunning post. And I would love to see more of that beautiful garden!

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  14. Friko, thank you for this wonderful post and the absolute beautiful photos. It is very early in the morning, we are preparing for a day out, but first I had a cup of coffee and a visit to your garden, which is just such a marvelous place.
    You have a poetic way with words, I love how you write, I am glad I found your blog - I even do not remember how, but that does not matter, doesn't it? Greetings to you, a hug too - I wish you a good and meaningful day! :-)

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  15. I have been loving the wrens this year. They have finally found the bird house I placed for them a couple of years ago and they are busily flying back and forth with goodies for the brood. Being a good bit south of you, most of the spring blooms have come and gone here and we're rapidly moving into summer flora. Went for a long hike in the wilds today. Yes, it is nice to get away from the computer.

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  16. Every single one of these photos is a treat to the eyes. I love the last one!

    Take time to enjoy the garden. Blogging can wait. Just give us a glimpse of your world now and again. You bring such refreshment to those of us who love to drink in the beauty of where you live that you capture so artfully with your camera.

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  17. Excellent and beautiful round up on what's blossoming around you.

    And time-it is of course priceless-so take it whenever you get the chance.

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  18. Time off is a good thing - time off from anything.
    I love your garden posts. Your garden is the one to which I aspire - and the gardener that helps with it. So English!
    Broom we have aplenty here - five seeds brought to the Island by a Scot named Grant and they have become a scourge - a pretty one, but a scourge nonetheless.
    Welcome back!

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  19. To return, bringing the sights of spring with you - you sure know how to make an entrance! Your description of your garden and your photos are wonderful. I particularly like the drake!

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  20. Fabulous photos, and a good recounting of your time away from the computer.

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  21. I love these images.. your garden is lovely and that tree on the left in that last image is magnificent. Love the drake.

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  22. So happy you enjoyed your break -- and who can blame you with such a beautiful day -- but so nice to have you back sharing all the beauties in your garden!

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  23. you came back STRONG!



    Warm Aloha from Waikiki
    Comfort Spiral

    ><}}(°>

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  24. Hello:
    There must, we believe, always be time for a life away from the computer which can, if one is not very careful, become addictive. And what better alternative than to be outside enjoying your garden at this, possibly the loveliest, time of year.

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  25. Indeed, our offline lives should always take precedence over our online ones.
    The sky pictures are particularly stunning, especially the last one - it looks like a very artistic Scherenschnitt!

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  26. I don't mind such time-offs either. If anything, one returns with a fuzzy head buzzing with images and thoughts that the cyberspace can hardly provide, let alone compete with.
    Your pictures are lovely and the tulips here clearly seem to be making a statement - "we remain the eternal spring queen, come who may!"

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  27. I am learning something new from you every time. I already love the English flower names like nasturtium (well, also the German "Kapuzinerkresse")and hollyhock and marigold and dandelion, but Yellow Broom for Ginster was new to me. Very fitting!
    If you wanted to fight the moss in your lawn, use Kalkstickstoff. We did, and now we have grass again.
    Can you, by the way, find some English pen-pals for my pupils (see my latest post)?? Happy Springtime from Angela

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  28. Your gardens are so beautiful. Is yellow broom much like our forsythia?

    I will most likely be a sporadic blogger once the nice weather is established. My computer is the stationary kind - but I am not!

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  29. Wunderschöne Fotografien, Friko!
    So ein Blumenmeer und die hübsche Ente, sicher ein Erpel (Männchen).
    Die beiden letzten Aufnahmen wirken fantastisch!
    ♥lichst Zaunwinde

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  30. Retired English Teacher said it for me. I have to add, though, that your description of the amorous ducks in your vicinity gave me satisfying, time-release laughter. It just keeps on bubbling up.

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  31. So beautiful...I enjoyed the journey very much
    Hugs
    SUeAnn

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  32. I'm glad you took a break for selfish reasons. I won't have as many missed posts to read now that I'm back from my break :).

    It is truly a balancing act sometimes and I am pleased to hear that you were away for the very best of reasons.

    Absolutely stunningly gorgeous photos. Thank you for sharing Friko. Thank you.

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  33. I've been away from my computer as well - how lovely to come back and find your meander through the garden and thoughts on spring. I get upset when I see a female duck being bothered so much by insistent drakes. Just too soft I think.

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  34. The broom is blooming here as well, but here it is not native and is a terrible invasive weed that chokes out our native shrubs. The same is true in New Zealand. I have been thinking a lot about weeds lately -- been in the garden a bit myself.

    The other photos in your piece I loved. You are lucky to have a gardener. I am going to try to find one here. My place is much to big for an 80 year old with a husband who hates yard work to manage alone.

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  35. Looks like new lives and colors have just started springing fresh from your garden. I especially like the light and shadow on the tulips. Sometimes we need to catch our breath to start afresh knowing blogging and commenting can wait.

    Yoko

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  36. Ah , but if I were taking time off from my computer , I wouldn't have seen your photos ! Or been left wondering about scattify .....

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  37. Sometimes you need a little time off from the keyboard. Glad you didn't take time off from your camera, too. ;)

    I worry about lone young female ducks because I saw one harassed literally to death over three days by a gang of four young drakes when I was a kid. No matter how many times I chased them away they'd come right back. Never let her rest of eat till she died. I guess they need a big strong male to protect them and keep the rest away. :(

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  38. Your photos are magnificent, Friko. I especially liked the photo of the broom in flower because it reminded me of a bit of confusing fun in writing a post for my own blog.

    My guide to the Zerf Germany Heimat Museum said "For honey production in former times a bee shed could be made in a very simple way. One pushed four stakes into the ground, placed a slanted roof covered with Ginster (broom) on top; and put the (woven) straw hives underneath."

    Reading that and being totally unfamiliar with flowering broom, I wondered if they put the broom (household variety) there in case the bees started to attack. Then I thought to check an English dictionary. Flowering broom made a great deal more sense but I still picture German bee hives with a household broom at the top.

    Thanks for that special smile as I looked at your garden.

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  39. you give a magical tour of the garden, with sights and smells and personalities abounding. taking time to smell the flowers never gets played out, ever.

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  40. Gardener=careful. Hmmm. I'm betting that is short-lived. He hits me as a touch free spirit & impulsive.

    Glad you ranged freely under your own internet-free sky for a while. Blogging needs its breaks.

    Thank you for the kind email as per my last post. ~Mary

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  41. Friko - your garden looks beautiful - good to take a bit of time out. I had a walk round the quarry today - it's beautiful there too - but not a duck or drake in sight.

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  42. Oh thank you so very much for this escape. Please have a wonderful weekend.

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  43. Splendid pics of sky, ducks and garden. Your yellow broom looks like an invasive plant that has colonized whole hillsides here in Oregon. Yep, I think that's it! We have neighbors from the UK and they love this plant dearly, but it is choking out everything in its path around here.

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  44. The last photos of trees outlined against the sky are stunning in their simplicity.

    Your garden is an inspiration - but tell me, do you have broom inside your garden boundaries, or does it proliferate everywhere as a nuisance as here in western Canada?

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  45. I've been taking days off myself. the weather is just too nice, there is much to be done, and I know before too long it will just be hot.

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  46. I don't think I can add anything new or creative to this list of comments except to say I really loved your description of the love struck drakes! The photos of the trees and sky were stunning!

    My husband is a beekeeper, and I pictured the Scotch Broom (as we call the plant here, though by your description I don't think it's the same!) taking over our side yard where the hives are!

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  47. The pictures are very beautiful - I loved the tulips and the sky shots!!

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  48. Gorgeous post, Friko, and I too have been away from the comnputer for a while, but sadly not in the garden. Too cold and wet up here in the north of Scotland until today. The broom isn't yet out up here, but the hillsides are vibrant with gorse blossom and the scent is wonderful.

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  49. I have banned most yellow from my garden, so none hear unless you count the short-lived Lady Banks Rosa. The birds like moss and use it in their nests. I find loose clumps everywhere.

    Thanks to your able description we now know how Leda felt ... indignant. First egg-making then cracked eggs?? Dianne

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  50. What a pleasant wander through your garden, watching nature in its emerging splendor, Friko. We were away visiting family and now I'm enjoying catching up with blogs. Yours made my day.

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  51. What lovely sunny shots! We've had lots of snow today, so it was nice to come here for some warmth.

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  52. Your garden is beautiful, and so are your photos. I especially like the last because of its mystery. Thank you.

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  53. I love moss too and much prefer it to grass, I hate lawns, they just need cutting all the time.
    Lovely photos Friko.

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  54. those breaks from interwebz
    bode well for gardens, birds and grass (moss).
    Lovely photos.
    XO
    WWW

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  55. A welcome break lifts the spirits. Your spring looks beautiful - clear, colourful, bright. Your last photograph reminds me of a Jan Pienkowski drawing - I really like his work.
    The gorse is in full, glorious bloom now. It's always in flower but in spring it outdoes itself.

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  56. Stunning set of images, but two - the ash tree buds and the storm clouds - are top level then some.

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  57. the last two images of the silhouettes against the sky are particularly beautiful

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  58. Hi Friko .. great photos and 'talk' about the garden and time off - don't blame you one little bit ..

    The lawn here has been overtaken with rampant moss .. the sea gulls love it- trying to build a nest in the birdbath again .. and they "do" it on the lawn in full view mid afternoon .. is that normal??!! The bird bath has water in .. and the foxes jump in it occasionally - so it's a plain silly place to try and nest ..

    Some stories from down south .. skies have been like that down here and we've had some rain .. not nearly enough though ...

    Enjoy the Spring and lead into summer .. and see you when you're ready .. I love broom - we had a stretch at the bottom of the garden in summer that had all the colours of broom in it - beautiful ..

    Cheers Hilary

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  59. Frico, your photo of clouds in the sky in great!

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  60. I have to say, I've been trying to go 'outside' a bit more recently. Maybe it's just age, or wanting to slow down the pace a bit and not always to be in front of the screen. Never been a nature person (as you know!) but I'm warming up.

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  61. Your time off reaped a harvest of wonderful pictures. Isn't Sprng a joy! I'm happy I don't find April 'the cruellest month,' as T.S. Eliot called it.

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  62. GORGEOUS picture of the duck and everything else. WOW!

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