Misty Morning Walk in the Copse

BBbbrrrrrr! It's cold out! 
I woke up to a freezing house, and saw that the world was white. No, not snowy white, but misty white. And after a gloriously sunny Spring week, it was 5 degrees, so back into my winter coat to walk Gina.

It was a struggle. Mist makes her want to sniff every tuft of grass, every molehill, every tree stump, every dog turd.

So I let her do just that, and took the time to take some misty copse photographs for you.

I told you about our copse, didn't I? It isn't large, only 17 acres, and full of poplars and some oaks and cherries. And one beech; the grave of our beloved Freya.

Around the pond there are willows, both small ones that get cropped every year, and large ones that get left alone. 

And bordering the walking routes are cherries, currants, dogwoods and hawthorns.

Gina knows every inch. So do we. We warned our kids never to go there alone when they were small, and I do not go alone in the dark, for unfortunately it gets used intensively by the part of Hellevoetsluis youth you do not want to meet after sundown.

There were times when I was part of a group of people 'managing' this copse, together with the official manager, which is Staatsbosbeheer. But frustration about the total lack of interest of my fellow suburbanites made me quit after four years. It's heartbreaking when you work and lobby hard to get benches and then see them destroyed within the week by yobbos. 

The March violets underneath the cherries always make me happy. We planted a small tuft of these years ago, and they have spread and spread. Lovely!

We've planted 1000 narcissii  bulbs with our group, and they are still around. This year they have been mostly left alone, but we have had years when they were all destroyed... I do not understand young people sometimes, even though I spend my working life among them.

The butterfly plants behind the flowers were planted by a fellow guerilla gardener. We sometimes meet him in the gloaming, armed with his spade and young butterfly plants.

Gina having fun underneath the catkins. 

A spider used the dogwood branches to make a perfect web.

I'll leave you with some of the flowers from my garden. Sweet, eh?

Have a good day!