Weather

[Kristl Walek]

Ah, Hans, now I feel in good company....except you live in a MUCH more beautiful area of the world than me.....my heart yearns for mountains...

I am still new on this forum, so don't know too many members yet....I assume that is Cypripedium parviflorum (or var. pubescens) in your picture? Such a wonderful species that I affectionately, and with great love,  call the "weed of Cyps" as it rewards with ease of growth and absolute toughness in the garden- growing happily almost anywhere it is planted.

It is very widespread in my area, and in the spring one can drive the country roads and see the ditches first filled with the yellow of Caltha palustris, and a month later the yellow of the Lady's Slipper.

Kristl

[Luc Gilgemyn]

Great Christmas card Hans ! 

[Martin Baxendale]

Soon be avalanche time again, Hans. 

[johanneshoeller]

Kristl,
here is a better photo of that Cypripedium calceolus. It grows behind my house. In Austria you can only find calceolus or calceolus alba (yellow). And the other plants are typical Austrian calceolus, we have no pubescens or parviflorum here.

Hans

[ChrisB]

Magical pictures Krisl

[Paul T]

Hans,

Wonderful pictures.  So VERY different from here!!    Love those Cyp pics... the contrast between the yellow and the almost black is just great!! 

[mark smyth]

I hope everyone in the UK and Ireland have tender plants somewhere warm. -5 overnight they say. So far no frost here but it has been raining

[ChrisB]

Few icy bits in our rain this morning, but so far none of the white stuff in Northumberland.

[mark smyth]

only slight frost here. I could have left my Pelargoniums outside in the green house

[David Nicholson]

First frost of the Autumn (unless I haven't been up early enough to see any others!) on the cars when I pulled the curtains back this morning, but by 0915 it had all gone. Roll on Spring.

[ChrisB]

Strangely been cold enough for frost, but none happened here.  And its a bit warmer today than yesterday.  Bit of precipitation but only rain yesterday, no sign of snow.

[David Nicholson]

The sort of November day I really hate here today. Grey and misty, drizzle, but 13C outside at 1500 hours. Don't mind November if it's sunny but cold.

[mark smyth]

I'm f f f f freezing. It's only t t t t three degrees outside and I have so much to do.

[TC]

We decided to go for a walk by the river Ayr this afternoon.  As soon as we put our feet out the door the rain started.  I got my walk by pushing a trolley around Asda's !  By contrast, we went to Dunblane on Thursday and the weather was beautiful - sunny with little or no wind.  The purpose was to visit Graham Stewart's shop and hopefully to get Cindy's Christmas present.  For those who do not know, Graham is probably the best gold and silversmith in Scotland.  It was thanks to the early bulb shows that we discovered his shop.  While Cindy snuffles round the display cases, Graham and I talk about guitars and musicians.   He used to think I was a retired Church of Scotland minister.  I had to disabuse him of this as I was expelled from the C.of S. Sunday school at age 7 !!  Cindy chose a silver brooch and the plastic was duly handed over.  Next stop was the Scottish Antiques and Arts centre just outside of Doune.  A pair of earings were next on the list.  It was a pleasant drive from there to Callandar, the Trossachs, Aberfoyle and then the long haul to Balloch, on Loch Lomond stopping at Loch Lomond Shores - another shopping centre.  As everything happens in threes, she came away with a Sheila Fleet ring that matched a pendant and earings already owned.  Comsidering what I had paid for my new guitar, I got off lightly.  The Botanical part of our day out was the purchase of two Phalaenopsis orchids from Lidl at £4.99 each.  Just now, we seem to get about 5 days rain and then on sunny still day. Only 3 weeks until mid-winter and then the long drag until Spring

[Carol Shaw]

A light frost here this morning and David persuaded me to go for a walk, which I enjoyed, but after lunch will have to get back to the joys of writing the secretaries pages - or you will all be blaming me for getting your journals late