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Looking westwards from my front door this afternoon, a mixed bag of clouds form over the mountains - which are wearing a brand new and rather beautiful coat of snow.
It's always exciting to see them once again iced with a fresh layer of glistening white - and it reminds us that the rather silly but thrilling sport of hurtling down a mountain on two slim planks is nearly upon us again (or one thicker plank for the stronger and more balanced amongst you).
Looking eastwards out of my back door, I am somewhat jealous of my neighbour's rather sumptuous pine cones adorning her tree. No clouds in the sky looking in this direction - just good ol' fashioned Alberta blue skies again.A friend here told me a few weeks ago that early and plentiful amounts of pine cones signal a harsh winter to come. I'm not sure if she was just trying to cheer me up (!) and this is an old wives tale - or if it really is a true forecast for the next few months?
Remember my poor sunflower struggling to bloom by the end of the season? Well, he just about made it before a harsh frost cut him down in his prime.
If I leave the remnants of the sunflowers in place and don't tidy up for winter, will the seeds provide food for birds?
I have a mountain ash in my front garden - it is now laden with gorgeous brightly coloured berries. I know for sure that this will be a feeding ground for some feathered friends at some point.
This last picture (apologies for the quality but I didn't want to go outside and disturb them) is the same tree last winter, smothered in waxwings (I think) who gorged themselves silly on the berries from the tree, and stripped it naked in 8 minutes flat!
Have a great Friday.
Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteSydney - City and Suburbs
poor sunflower, but at least it tried!
ReplyDeletecome see my skywatch if you have the time!
have a great weekend!
Thanks j bar and fickleinpink for visiting.
ReplyDeleteHere in Scotland, my Sunflower ( I grow one at least every year )was dug out and thrown on the compost pile.....Its a sign that Autumn is definitely upon us, so batten down the hatches !!
ReplyDeleteGreat collection of photos for Sky Watch Friday, lovely views from your place.
ReplyDeleteP - I think we've just skipped autumn altogether and gone straight into winter! Bless, one sunflower - does it get lonely?! hee hee
ReplyDeleteWow, what great sky shots of the outdoors. I'm so sorry to hear about the sunflower. Those birds sure were hungry and ate those berries fast. Thanks for sharing. You have so much nature right outside your door.
ReplyDeleteWow, quite a lot of snow in the mountains already! Brrrrr.....
ReplyDeleteI'm giggling about you adoring your neighbour's rather sumptuous pine cones! ;-) This will explain why!
http://mstoastburner.blogspot.com/2009/07/where-baby-trees-come-from.html
Hope things are looking up for you. :-)
How do you ever move from your front door with that view? Stunning!
ReplyDeleteThe rowans are very heavy with us too. Don't know if it means a hard winter - could just be because we had a wet summer.
Thank you linda - I can smugly admit my view from the front door is a good 'un! And I often just sit on my sofa by the front window, bathing in the heat from the sun coming through (even if it's -10 outdoors) and just breathe deeply.
ReplyDelete