These thorny natives offer no comfort:
greenbriar,
devil's walkingstick,
and horsenettle.
The dried fruit clusters of sumac that are common along roadsides look like dead wet rats. Not very cheery.
The blowsy blooms and warm breezes of summer are a distant memory:a dried up hydrangea is a familiar sight around older homes,
And the lavender blooms of an invasive chinaberry are replaced with drab beige fruits that will bore us all winter. For a long time I didn't know what they were...I thought maybe they were some kind of ornamental pear.
Finally, a weeping willow cries as it loses the last of its leaves.
If you think you can stand it, you can see the rest of my depressing December week 4 pictures here.
8 comments:
I am glad to know you didn't know what a chinaberry was at first either!! Did you know it is on some invasive lists? I do think the berries are a nice addition to the winter landscape....guess another plant would be better.
Cold enough for you today?? or yesterday?? or tomorrow? brrrrrr
It's plenty cold enough! Don't we usually get a short warm spell in January? Where is it? I did know that chinaberry is invasive, I know a couple people who have them in their yards, but I don't think I could convince them to cut them down.
omigosh, I don't think I can bear to see more sad plant photos! Even your tone seems a bit bleak. I hope the new year improves quickly (and the weather warms). Love the site re-design.
Not so depressing at all. There is beauty in the garden even in the dead of winter and you captured it wonderfully. Have a great New Year.
Thanks again for helping me out with my identification. I'll be posting on it sometime next month.
Almost a rogue's gallery of undesirable plants. We have a Chinaberry wreath hanging in our kitchen that my wife bought in Charleston. She took a picture of the wreath maker without permission and got a tongue lashing.
As for your Honest Scrap award, congratulations, and I scored the same as Susan with 3 out of 7.
Maybe I'm perverse. I like the photos, especially the first one. It's a beautiful image, very Arts and Crafts. And having grown up in Mississippi, I love the Chinaberry tree. I'd be growing it in my garden if it were hardy here.
Must say, the devil's walkingstick brings up images from the English mysteries that color my imagination in the hour before sleep comes.
I need a walking stick! We were strolling through a redwood grove, along a slippery path by rushing water - it is the rainy season here in Northern California. Branches had fallen across the paths, and one looked like it had the potential for crafting a stick to keep in the car for just such a walk.
I'm entranced by your wintery images. Have spent a couple hours downloading/copying photos of blooms, and I've now had enough of their cheery message.
I'm glad you guys liked the drab, forlorn winter shots. I guess I must be a glass-half empty kind of guy.
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