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Snow covered branches
So they got it right after all, those weather forecasters, and we did wake up to a winter wonderland this morning. On Monday, with predictions of snow we travelled to Devon for a meeting of flower farmers with blankets, a shovel, an overnight bag and food supplies in the car, only to travel back later that day in glorious sunshine, feeling a little over-dressed in all our layers, with not a hint of snow anywhere. It was rain falling last night when I went to bed, so I did wonder whether there were going to lots of disappointed children (and adults) this morning. There were runs on sledges yesterday with shops selling out. Imagine the disappointment if the snow had never materialised.
Although I’m eager for spring to arrive I’m pleased to see the snow. We have had two very cold and snowy winters recently but generally snow, and deep snow in particular, is not that common an event. We have a friend who was born and brought up in London and she hadn’t seen snow until she was in her twenties and the first time was on a visit ‘up north’. Its rarity means councils and government can’t justify buying the sort of equipment other, more snowy, countries do to cope with the conditions. So, as a result, the country grinds to a halt. Snowmageddon, I believe, is the term being used this year to describe shops being stripped of ‘essentials’, schools closed and flights being cancelled.
Having a spell of snow makes me feel like we’ve actually had a winter rather than just the mild and damp weather that normally constitutes winter in Wales. I love how a spot of the white stuff completely changes the landscape around me. By this point in January I’m sick of the monotony of the grey, brown, drab winter’s landscape. Waking up to a blanket of snow makes me feel excited. After tea and porridge I was out this morning taking photographs in the garden and along the country paths leading to the allotment. Trees that were boring and dull yesterday have been transformed; snow clinging to the dark branches creates a stunning silhouette against the grey sky. Pines and conifers lining the road look like a scene from a Christmas card. One of the delights of pristine, virgin snow is what it hides. Even the scruffiest of neighbours’ gardens can look magical . . . well, magical is stretching it a tad, but certainly more pleasing to the eye than for the other 360 days a year I have to look at them.
Of course, snow doesn’t remain immaculate and unblemished for long. It isn’t long before grit turns the snow into an awful brown slush and there’s the rush to clear it from everywhere. We live alongside a small road that the council don’t grit but there’s a tractor repair centre in the village and they clear the roads the council don’t do. It is very good of them. There are a lot of elderly people in the village and I appreciate that snow seems to delight less and less as your mobility diminishes. There is part of me though that wants the beautiful snowy scene to remain that way, at least for a day. Instead there is this frantic dash to shift it. The huge piles of snow left by the snow plough will remain long after the rest of the snow has melted, dying a long, increasing dirty and unattractive death by the side of the road.
Snow covered yew
In the garden, the weight of snow can cause problems. Branches can snap and hedges can collapse. It’s worth brushing off excess snow if you have plants you think will be vulnerable to this but, on the whole, snow isn’t a problem. Unlike frost, which can damage plants, snow is like a duvet protecting plants underneath from the cold temperatures above. So, whilst everyone else in the village is sweeping and scraping away the snow, as if it’s an unwelcome visitor, I’m going to enjoy it. The snowy caps on top of my box balls, the yew topiary slowly morphing into snowmen and the thin delicate stems of my Viburnum bodnantense, which now look fat and chunky and are in danger of developing the dreaded ‘bat wings’.
Stay warm and cosy this weekend. WW
wellywoman 
All the messy bits of the garden suddenly look pristine and mysterious, don’t they? This is lovely snow – all light and fluffy and flurrying in the wind. Love it, but don’t want to it hang around – the pavements and roads turn to ice-rinks around here and it’s pretty miserable if you’re hale and hearty, never mind being unsteady on your pins. Enjoy the weekend.
As you say, just like a Christmas card. The snow that fell here yesterday late afternoon has already melted – sad. Christina
Looks beautiful when it first falls and doesn’t normally last too long here in the UK, though might for this one as it looks like its forecast for a few days. There is not much snow here with me in Huddersfield, a slight covering which has been here a few days but I think what you’ve had is heading over to the east so I think we are going to get it tonight and tomorrow!
We’ve had lingering snow since the beginning of the week, then another layer yesterday late afternoon and in to the evening. It had been forecast that the majority would fall in the early hours but that hasn’t materialised, and it’s now predicted to snow again this afternoon. We’ll have to wait and see if they get it right this time. Hope you enjoy the snow this weekend before it turns to mush.
I thought you would have some wonderful views to show us, very Christmassy!! We just have sleet at the moment, so the snow won’t last long, the lawn is beginning to turn back to green already! Stay warm and cosy this weekend, goodness knows what next week will bring!
Hi WW,
In general I leave the snow too, because the grit gets everywhere and makes the house a mess as we tread it in. I do clear the road though so I can get in/out. Plus, snow covered plants are always very pretty and I’ll attempt my usual snowflake shots.
I do with it’d clear quickly though; not looking forward to waiting until mid nextweek before it goes!
I agree with you that snow makes a “real” winter. I come from up north and living near London has been a great disappointment with barely any snow lying on the ground for more than a few hours. Luckily the last three years have made up for it.
There are downsides to snow but the magic as it transforms the landscape makes up for it. Even my recycling bins looked rather attractive this morning 🙂
I’m with you, WW and almost take it as a personal affront when someone tells me how much they hate snow. Perhaps if we had solid weeks of it I might find it tiresome. I had to leave work early yesterday (the drive can be impossible to get up with a couple of inches on it) so no chance to snap. Thanks for sharing yours. Dave
A good snow post and I like the pictures. It snowed here yesterday,and settled, so I went to the plot today to take a few photos for tomorrow’s post.
Here in London I’d rather that it didn’t snow as even a dusting seems to cause chaos. The other problem is that the plot was already waterlogged so when it melts it will only add to the problem. xx
Love your snow covered yew; it looks like a giant pine cone 🙂
I, too, love the way snow covers a multitude of sins – our pile of stuff to be shredded is covered in a beautiful mound of white, glistening beauty.
Hope that you are enjoying the white stuff WW – it is indeed magical and kinder to gardens than very hard frost. I think that as you say its appeal can diminish with age, when not only reduced mobility can be an issue but also the very fact that falling in the stuff or its icy aftermath can potentially have more serious implications too. A time to look out for neighbours and wildlife.