Leaves Return

I thought autumn had officially gone. Nope. In fact, I made a glib remark on my blog back on the 1st December (was it really that far back) that when it had first started to snow that the white stuff had prevented me from picking up the leaves. It's pay back time. My Bank Holiday Monday has been spent in part, raking leaves from a frozen but greenish looking lawn and sweeping the paths and drive. I've filled a council recycling bin!

I found this fungus growing on a log in the garden and as far as I can tell, it's a Laccaria Laccata, which, despite it's name is a common woodland fungus.

I've noticed that the weight of the snow has snapped a branch from a Ceoanthus tree (bright blue flowers in a spring) which has destroyed the shape completely a pruning job with the saw for next weekend. Other than that, the garden doesn't look too bad. I've lost two fish from my big pond; one had been caught high up and had been frozen and another had got itself trapped behind a basket which looks as if it's been moved by the expanding ice. I've heard this morning from my brother in law that a friend of his who has lost a huge number of big fish in his pond due to the weather - so sad.

Mucky mounds of ice still hang around the verges and daytime temperatures have only just reached 1 degree plus today. Still, it's only January.

My wife has just returned from the council civic amenities site and had to queue for ages - it was packed. Our Christmas decorations such as they were have been taken down, house tidied and a few bottles and cardboard taken to the tip. She went the supermarket after that and that was heaving and she gave up going to B&Q, the traffic queue to get in the car park was horrendous - the shops have only been shut for a day! Back to work tomorrow.

Chat soon

Ta-ra