It was sunny (but cold) yesterday morning as I set out to buy a morning paper. I decided to look on the bright side and see if I could find any signs of spring. First there were the winter pansies outside the front door - as the name suggests, they're not strictly spring flowers ... but they're bright.
Yes, more pansies and winter-flowering heather, but I'm sure I saw a few buds in the leaf joints of that clematis.
Down the lane beside the house. Look at that sky. Positively Australian. You think?
This is the main road - unusually quiet. Not too many leaves on those trees.
Back round the other way and up the (quiet) road at the top of our street. Look! There's Sheepcat, the local giant feline, out for his morning constitutional.
Round into the back garden. This rather moth-eaten polyanthus seems to be the only splash of colour...
... apart from this slightly less scruffy one. These have been blooming in a desultory way since autumm, so they're not really signs of spring at all.
Ah, but see! Daffodils pushing through a mat of dead leaves. That's encouraging. It's spring! (Or it will be soon.)
See, I told you this was Australia - here's a eucalyptus in a neighbour's garden against a burning hot sky.
Inside, defrosting, I took a picture of a begonia semperflorens living up to its name. This was outside till the autumn, when I rescued it, or it would be seriously dead by now.
How nice. The daffodils are cautiously poking their noses up in my front garden, too. I hope their bravado is not squashed by snow, which I gather is threatened!
ReplyDeleteSeems like it will not be very long now before you are making me swoon with envy at the sight of your lovely spring blooms...but you know me, I would drop everything for a chance of being in Scotland at any time of year, the dead of Winter included!
ReplyDeleteOh, and the district does look very lovely in the daylight!
ReplyDeleteI have daffodils poking through too. But tropical it is absolutely not! I am so impressed with your winter pots, Isabelle! Mine are dead. Barren. Except for the little daffodil shoots!
ReplyDeletePretty good "Australian" sky but when you can stand on the busiest street in Edinburgh at the busiest time of a frantic day - look up and if you can see nothing but such a vast blue vault that you might as well be standing totally alone despite the crowds around you, then you have an Australian sky! (We do have the odd cloud ... occasionally) You do live in a lovely place - thank you for sharing the photos.
ReplyDeleteThat's such an enjoyable stroll around - what a good idea.
ReplyDeleteDefiant optimism....?
ReplyDeleteIt was a glorious clear blue sky day yesterday wasn't it? I had guests so was stuck indoors cooking and entertaining (which I do enjoy for the most part) so missed it apart from a brief doggie walk. Sulk.
Thanks for sharing.
Lesley x
It's lovely to take a little walk with you and see a bit of your neighbourhood, dear Isabelle.
ReplyDeleteFancy having primroses still blooming. Even scruffy they look wonderful to me :)
I don't believe that's really an Aussie sky. Not quite hot enough :)
I see you have a lovely begonia too. And a beautiful bunch of mums. Lucky you!
Spring is not around any corner in our neck of the woods....
But the snow that fell today was very fluffy and pretty. And tonight as I drove (slowly) home from a church budget meeting (oh joy) the snowy scene was a sight to behold..really lovely! (Teacher, am I allowed to begin sentences with 'and'?)
What a nice walk you had, the flowers are nice. We have so much snow here in Michigan, it is hard to see over the snow piles when driving, that is one big cat.
ReplyDeleteYipee -- a walk through the neighborhood. You're so funny about the weather. And woohoo -- a Sheepcat sightingg -- I looked and looked for him when we were there, but no joy!
ReplyDeleteHey! Austalia in Scotland!
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed the walk, thankyou. Best image for me was the shoots of Daffs, poking through leaf litter.
Have we Aussies got under your skin Isabelle, with our boasting about blue skies and sunshine? Don't think it is all good though, because all blue sky and sunshine means no rain. My daffodils haven't flowered for years.
ReplyDeleteLovely pics. I particularly love the polyanthus. I have no luck growing them here, but in our Christchurch garden, we had beautiful plants & wonderful blooms.
ReplyDeleteIt is so hot here, the flowers that dare to bloom, get cooked on the stems!!