6th January, 2009

I would have hoped to have made a start on my gardening by now but it is sooo cold. The ground hasn't thawed for days and I can barely get the tips of the fork into the earth.

Despite that, my wilderness is not devoid of life and colour. The Echeveria pictured is in a tub outside the back door and seems none the worse for the freezing conditions.

The little heuchera is frozen solid but adds a lovely splash of colour to a border where nearly everything else is dormant.

The Eleagnus always provides a welcome bit of colour. The one pictured is in a container in the back yard, but there is another, bigger one in a shrub border halfway down the garden. It is too cold to traipse down there take a photo of that one.

One of my favourite shrubs for winter colour is the Mahonia, Charity. Ours is usually in full flower by Christmas, but this year, although it has been flowering since early December, the flowers are slow to come out.

I have saved the brightest and best for last. This beautiful cotoneaster,

not only provides a sight for jaded winter eyes, with its bright berries and colourful leaves, it also provides a tasty meal for our resident blackbirds who have now totally stripped the pyracantha and other varieties of cotoneaster of berries.

There is not much else worth taking photos of at present. My lawns all look like this:Long grass, moss, fallen leaves and snow/frost. It makes a lovely crunchie sound when I walk on it.

Before I say goodnight I would like to share with you a picture of the sunset which I took out by the gate at 4.30 pm. Guess you could say that nature had saved the best for last.