As we hurtle towards a period of excess, razzmatazz and a world of green, red and sparkly things (many garish and over the top), my vase this week offers the simplest of stems, and the promise of even better things to come. Hazel catkins.
To fancy thing up a little bit, sitting alongside my vase are a few leaves and the shaggy acorn cups of Turkey oak, Quercus cerris, which was introduced to this country in the 1700s from south-east Europe and Asia Minor. I love the rich chestnut brown on the inside of the cup.
To fancy thing up a little bit, sitting alongside my vase are a few leaves and the shaggy acorn cups of Turkey oak, Quercus cerris, which was introduced to this country in the 1700s from south-east Europe and Asia Minor. I love the rich chestnut brown on the inside of the cup.
Wow, those shaggy acorn cups are amazing!
ReplyDeleteThey are fun aren't they! I loved them when I was a child. A bit like little furry animals! A
DeleteJust beautiful and beautifully photographed- especially the acorns. Always a pleasure when someone makes us notice something beautiful we might walk past.
ReplyDeleteThank you Cathy. I am enjoying the soft colour of the catkins, because I know that any day now the colours are going to be ramped up to red holly berries, glossy green leaves, and so a period of quiet is rather nice! A
DeleteYes, the acorn cups are absolute stars but the leaves and catkins are stylish in their own right and it is good to celebrate all three of them - thanks for sharing them with us
ReplyDeleteI thought the catkins were a lovely reminder that there is life after Christmas and a New Year is not too far off. Will that bring fresh new things - goodness only knows. What we can rely on, though, are plants to follow their star!
DeleteI love the catkins and the fuzzy acorn cups!
ReplyDeleteI've always loved catkins. As children, of course, we were told that they were lamb's tails, left behind in the hedgerows! Once the catkins in my vase start to open out and the pollen falls, you might be seeing them again!!
DeleteSo simple and beautiful. I will definitely be looking for some of these over the next few weeks. Beautiful finds and photographs.
ReplyDeleteThanks Alison. I am always surprised to see catkins in December, but they are always there. To me they belong to Easter, but I expect that now these stems are indoors and warming up the catkin flowers will start to come out! Pollen everywhere! A
DeleteNice. Those acorns are lovely, they remind me of Overcup Oaks. I rarely seen any catkins like that, so thank you.
ReplyDeleteI haven't heard of Overcup Oaks so I have just looked them up. Another lovely oak tree! Apparently the Turkey oak in this country is starting to challenge our native oak. It's taken over 300 years to do that, so I think it must be a bit of a slow starter!
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