Happy 2023!

 

Happy New Year!

Another ‘warmest ever’ New Year’s Day, with weather that is typical for what we’ve been having since the snow melted: bright sunshine with a chilly wind, until the clouds came over and brought rain and hail.  ‘Unsettled’ is the Met Office’s term for it.  But there’s no forecast for particularly cold weather for a couple of weeks at least.

The cold weather in December has left its mark on the garden.  As I expected, the lettuces (which were starting to bolt anyway) and radicchio had succumbed, and other plants have been held back by the cold.  My New Year’s Day flower count was on the low side.  There were the winter stalwarts – winter honeysuckle, winter jasmine (but very few flowers), various viburnums, Mahonia ‘Winter Sun’ and rosemary.  Apart from those, it was a case of scrumping around for a few flowers on the big hellebore in the front garden, a couple of Vinca major blooms in the front wall, a pair of comfrey flowers in a sheltered spot by the long hedge, a few daisies here and there, some meadow grass and a panicum (fountain grass) head.  In the past there have been some flowers left over from the summer at New Year, but this year all of those are already gone; and the snowdrops are showing white buds but no opened flowers.  I make that 11 flowering plants.  But the garden is only waiting for better weather; the rhubarb ‘Timperley Early’ is already showing promising-looking sprouts.  (Note to self: it needs dividing this year!)

I had worried about the smaller birds’ ability to find food during the cold snap, but a wren has been around, and the family of long-tailed tits (all five of them) have been enthusiastically visiting the fatball container.  Our regulars are coming daily: a flock of sparrows, a couple of dunnocks, at least two robins (one of whom is trying to invade the patio but is being seen off by the resident robin there), some starlings, a few blackbirds, a group of blue tits, a collared dove and various woodpigeons, including Lefty who continues to dominate the patio.  And today a greenfinch came for a drink – something of a rarity these days.

I still haven't planted the tulip bulbs because of the cold weather; a job to be getting on with!