Winter Has Arrived . . .

We are starting a wet and cold weekend.  Got up this AM to a gentle and persistent rain and temperatures around mid forties.  No ice, no frost, just misery.  The house is warm enough but without the brightness of sun light, it is just plain crappy.  Supposed to rain on and off all weekend through to and including Monday.

As I look out the window I see more leaves have dropped out front.  The two Shumar Oaks, red oaks, are dispersing their summer leaves and acorns (for the squirrels, ya know).  The trees are not bear yet but they are shedding and you can see a little more daylight through their branches now.  Soon they will be stark trees with just an errant leaf here and there that refuses to fall.

The little oak on the side yard has turned from green to a sort of golden brown.  It dies not shed its leaves but instead pushes them off in the spring.  So I may lose a few leaves but holds on to the bitter end.  Its fellow Post Oak has been showering us with its smallish acorns (the squirrels are not interested in them, to small for their taste).  I vacuumed most of them up yesterday, cut the grass out back (cut the leaves out back is a better description).  The mulching blade takes fairly good care of them but out back where the Post Oaks most reside, the mower had a tough time with the leaves out back.  It would push them up under the mower motor and front wheels.  I found by reversing I could leave a pile of leaves, so moved a great deal of them over near the compost pile.  Later I can rake them into the compost pile.

I will have to venture out again later on a good bright sunny day and vacuum up some more leaves of the drive way and side walks.  I usually end up with eight or ten bags of leaves and the vacuum generally grinds them up as it sucks in the leaves.  I toss the lot into the compost pile.  We will have a nice collection of them and may haps some good soil in the spring.

I see the Narcissus poking up in their flower bed.  Sure sign that winter is here.  Will have to cut back the Clematis vine here shortly, it will return in the Spring.

Stay warm.