I always think of March as an inbetween kind of month. Winter is still lingering, but spring is trying to burst forth! This was evident when I finally managed to get out this morning after more than a week stuck indoors during our annual Arts and Crafts exhibition at our home. I took an early morning walk around my local Rodden Nature Reserve here on the outskirts of Frome. The Alder catkins(below) that had been such a rich and vibrantly deep red during the winter are now fading into a mellow brown.
Similarly, the Hazel catkins which are at their creamy yellow best in February are now losing that freshness.
Not that they're not still delicately beautiful, specially against a lovely blue sky!
The sight that really brought a smile to my face though was seeing the emergence of the incredibly soft and tactile Pussy Willow buds!
I defy anyone to resist running their fingers over these silky shiny buds.
It was difficult not to take loads of photos both against the gorgeous blue sky and also against the background of the surrounding shrubs.
These really are one of the true joys of the start of spring for me!
I find it hard to resist lichen when I come across it. Here, decorating a plain old fence post.
Another thing I seem to be drawn to are fallen logs. This one has a very interesting end to it, full of texture.
And to end this first of two posts from Rodden Reserve, another plant I don't seem able to resist.....the Bullrush, all ready to be used by nesting birds!
The next post will show some of the birds I found on this hours walk around Rodden.
Please also see my post below on my header query. Many thanks. I'm stumped!
11 comments:
This is so lovely, Jenny! I, too, cannot resist lichens anymore than I can resist soft mosses! Fallen logs also give me joy. The catkins and bullrush are super and LOVE the pussywillow...ETC! Thanks for taking us all along! Happy March!
Ah! Pussy Willow buds, that is lovely Jen. Have emailed about the blogger post.
Hi Jen - please can I use your photo of the Pussywillow as a wallpaper on my desktop? I absolutely love it!
Hi Debi, glad you enjoyed the post. It was so nice to get out in the sun this morning even though it was minus 2 deg C!
Hi Roy, They're at that stage for such a short time, I'm glad I caught these ones early. Thanks for your thoughts about the header problem!
Hi Sharon. Please feel free to use one for your desktop and thanks for asking. I think I'll do the same! (-:
Ah Spring. Just lovely! Great photos and I'm so glad you had that beautiful sky Jenny. Wonderful. Hope things go well with the header.
Hi Jen,
It looks like spring is arriving in your area. how coll this is!! you got a nice set of beautiful pictures!
Love all these signs of spring! Pussywillows are so sweet and I don't know any place to go take photos of any around here. Your photos of them are so sharp, I can "feel" the softness of them without even touching them.
I love Pussy Willows!
Glad to hear you got out into the sunshine! Your Pussy Willow photos are beautiful!
Dear all, many thanks for your lovely comments. I've found a way around my header problem I think and have decided to have a new look while I was about it! (-:
I like your new look. Glad you outsmarted blogger. Gosh, those buds are bustin' out! I don't think my willows have gotten that far yet. Love your stills, Jenny.
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