Feast for Winter Bees

February 8th has been a lovely warm day, frosty at first but then filled with sunshine; a welcome change from the endless grey days of late plus the roaring winds.

Suddenly I heard a great commotion on the verandah where baskets of hellebores and winter flowering aconites were in full bloom. I noticed not just one, but maybe 8 or 10 honey bees buzzing about from one flower to another, most indignant that I had appeared and interrupted their feast. One bee had a huge sack of pollen; it could hardly move. Weeks of starvation meant that it was determined to go home laden. Our two beehives seem to have survived the winter so far. These have been extreme times for them.

By coincidence I wrote a blog on February 5th last year after noticing the bees on hellebores and snowdrops. Maybe we should collate the information in a survey of winter honey bee sightings, as is done for garden birds!

The sunshine was especially welcome today as this was one of my February Open Tuesdays bringing visitors to see my winter garden. The grasses were magical with their sunny backlight,the cornus stems glistened,and the newly washed white stemmed birches positively gleamed. The aconites were in full flower and the bees obviously enjoyed them.....the snowdrops will follow in the next ten days.

Time to sit and chat

I am often asked do I ever sit out and enjoy the garden. Well, today we have both been working hard cutting back the ornamental grasses and pampas in the white stemmed birch avenue and beyond. But at lunch time we sat amongst the aconites beneath the lime trees and dined on delicious bread and cheese with home made chutney. Coffee was enjoyed in another spot and tea in yet another. Yes we do take pleasure in the garden, especially at 'tea breaks'. Then its time to just sit and chat, and savour all the sights around us!

The winter garden has been super this weekend...pity it was not like it on our open days...it should have been, but the insistent snowy blasts meant that flowering was delayed...all the early daffodils are out now, coinciding with aconites and snowdrops, early primroses and fragrant sarcocccoca....such a joyous collection of bright golds, creamy yellows, whites, greens etc etc. Patches of dark hellebores, cyclamen and black ophiopogon add a more dangerous, darker touch.

The Big Push

The aconites are at last ready for the big push, shoulder to the soil, just beginning to emerge, as the temperature has risen and we have enjoyed two sunny days. The cold weather of December and January, so far, seems to have held everything back so this is a welcome sight. The next two weeks will see them in full array, little golden lights carpetting the cottage garden, creating a carpet of colour under the lime trees, and edging the winter walk.

We have been spending the weekend washing all the paths through the cottage garden, around the French terrace and old fish pond. Not the nicest of jobs but at least they all now look clean and smart.

Even the white stemmed birches Betula utilis var jaquemontii 'Grayswood Ghost' received their yearly power wash; they glisten even more now and look wonderful in the low light of winter with the creamy white pampass plumes right behind them.