Twin Oaks in February

A typical February sky.  A gloomy shadow rests over my land for most of the wet month.

February is one of my least favorite months.  Although there were a few remarkably clear and sunny days this year, most of the month, as always, was wet, overcast and gloomy.  It rained often.  Usually, it fell in the form of an unceasing all-day shower, which led to some flooding because the ground was already so saturated with water from our wet January.  We had one major thunderstorm that brought a small tornado a couple of miles from my property.  The fierce wind took out three houses.

There was also several days of winter stillness and fog.  We had a strange snow just before Valentine's Day.  Enormous flakes fell for a couple of hours one morning and by evening the sun had melted it all away.  The few sunny days were often accompanied by cold temperatures and a biting gust of wind which is loud as it often roars through the naked branches grasping the air.

Nevertheless, there is the promise of spring, teasing me with a few flowers and hints of fragrance. On warmer days many of our bushes were busy with the activity of small bees.  I particularly enjoy walking through my woods this time of year.  You can see so far through the leafless trees and it is often quiet, especially near sunrise and sunset.  The birds are more active than in previous weeks, returning with their chirps and calls to one another through the fields and trees.

It was so rainy and warm during the month that we had a heavy fog enshrouding the place on a couple of occasions.

A big flaky snow fell about mid-month.  Huge flakes floated down from the sky.

It wasn't a lasting snow.  Just a nice wintry dusting.

Down by the road, my great-grandmother's daffodils bloomed all month long.  I love the sweet fragrance of the fresh yellow daffodils best this time of year.

They don't bloom all at once.  Just a few at a time until they peak.

Crocuses are a favorite in February as well.  Little splashes of color amidst the brown leaves.  These were photographed on a sunny day.

Irises emerge, waiting for spring weather.

More crocus, these photoed on a cloudy day.  Their color seems more rich and subtle on otherwise dull days.  I last blogged about our crocuses and daffodils back in 2011. 

Another little batch of them.

Hellebores, aka Lenten Rose, blooms prolifically in February.

The Lenten Rose blooms downward so you have to put one in your hand if you want to see inside it.

Near our back door.  This will become more tropical looking several months from now as summer approaches.

Looking east from the backdoor garden.  "Buddha Kudo" sits in the winter rock garden.

Ice folly daffodils come into bloom during the rainy weather.

They are not as fragrant as yellow daffodils, but they still have a wonderfully gentle sweetness.

Plenty of pollen here for smaller bees to find on warmer days.

We have several spots of ice follies in full bloom, one batch at the base of the tree just sprouted up in the middle of the path on its own.  Looking east toward my back yard.

The soil around Twin Oaks is rocky.  Years ago when we were digging and tilling new garden beds we collected a bunch of these small field stones.  We have them in little piles near our walking trails.  Here, under a Mulberry Tree and near a newer garden we are developing, we (Jennifer mostly) pilled them up to create a border area.  An old mule-drawn tiller from my grandfather's barn accentuates the space.

This is a type of spirea, an heirloom plant.  It is one of the oldest bushes that we have on our property.  Jennifer planted this back in 1994.  She got it way back then from someone we knew who was active in a local garden club.

Sporadically throughout February grouping of geese fly north near and over our property.  In this sequence of photos I captured of two groupings that were both evolving into the classic "V" formation as they ascended.

The shy crackles with a few of their calls as the form up.

The first grouping gets a bit more organized as it passes through the treeline and out of my view.

The second group begins to for the "V" as it leaves my view.  Plenty of cackles from far above are still easily heard.

A February surprise!  I happened to be outside on a rare sunny day when a blimp traversed directly over my house.

The blimp droned like a single engine plane, only much louder.  Neither Jennifer nor myself ever remember seeing a blimp at Twin Oaks before.

Maple trees begin to bud out in February.  A splash of red against the sky.

We have lost several large trees in our woods over the past 6-7 years.  This is what is left of an old sweet gum tree that died several years ago.  It was the largest sweet gum I've ever seen.  It was struck by lightning back before we ever bought the property and had a huge gash down its backside as a result.  The tree oozed from the gash for many years until it finally died.  Its leaves were beautiful each fall.

The sweet gum tree's back side showing the enormous gash cut into the tree by a lightning strike long ago.  The tree still lived more than twenty years after the strike and only died recently.

Another big tree casualty of recent years is this southern red oak.  This is along one of our walking trails, near a bench where I sit and read on occasion.

Death is a part of every forest.  I hope the relatively sudden surge in the demise of older, larger trees is not due to global warming.  Here you can see the moss-eaten base of the dead oak.

Common name winter honeysuckle.  This bush sees a lot of early bee action on sunny days when the wind is not so gusty.  It has a nice, subtle aroma when you stand next to it.

A quince bush.  This was transplanted from Jennifer's grandfather's garden.  The lineage of plants through the years is a traditional way for the memory of someone to be passed from one generation to the next though that sort of thing is endangered as the world seems to turn ever further from nature.

The crescent Moon over our house.

A second set of "twin oaks."  These two trees were planted by my grandfather's cousin many years ago when he lived in a small shack on my property.  My gravel driveway is in the background.  Facing southwest looking toward my front yard.

From our front porch looking west, Jennifer and I have seen literally thousands of spectacular sunsets at Twin Oaks since 1993.  This one just happened a couple of evenings ago.

Highlights of the month: Daffodils in full bloom.  A blimp!  A snow! A nearby tornado!  Lots of gray skies and rain.  Overall, another warm and wet month punctuated by a few clear, cold and windy days.  More variety in flowers with quince, crocuses, Lenten Rose, etc.  A number of birds start to return from farther south.  The ground is extremely soft and saturated.  A lot of the grass Jennifer planted in November and December is coming up.  I was able to mark a few daisies emerging in the various fields.  Looks like we won't have that many this year.