This is the beginning of Jude’s Garden Photography Challenge and this month the topic is Winter Garden. I though I would start out with part of my yard (garden) as it is right now. These photos I took just a few minutes ago.
What I like about rhododendrons they stay green through the winter and some of its buds start to develop.
Some wet maple leaves that cover our cedar bark. We actually leave most of our leaves to decompose and feed our soil.
A photo of our two year old Princess Tree which gets to 40 feet high (right) and Pestomen Bush (left) which is an evergreen in our front yard.
Jude asked what a Princess Tree here is a photo of the Princess Tree we had at our old house. It was about 4 years old here and a photo I found on the web from Steve Hoyle showing the size of its leaves.
Qi (energy) hugs
Cee
Cee's Photo Challenges 
I’d never heard of a Princess tree, Cee! Pretty leaves 🙂
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Glad you like it Jo.
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Green affirming there is life, even in the winter. A promise of Spring!
Nice.
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I do love Oregon. Our grass and undergrowth are usually green in the winter. The ever green’s actually stay green and not the grayish or brownish yucky color of colder climates. My first year here in Oregon (moved from Denver late November) I was so amazed to see green in the winter. 😀
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*Smile* This challenge might be just a tad difficult for me right now as Johannesburg is experiencing some of the hottest weather in living memory. Call me in July? 🙂
Smashing photos though!
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Thanks.
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Really like how you focused the bud photo. Such clarity in that one and you can see it clearly from behind the leaves 😊
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Thanks for your comment.
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Nice photos; I set yesterday aside to walk through the arboretum to see what was getting ready to bloom, it is always nice to feel like I’m on the same page with what others are thinking about.
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Thanks for commenting. I hope you had a great time at the arboretum.
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I love my rhododendron. After your prompt this week about what plant I’d be, I’ve been thinking that perhaps that was my answer. Mine lives in the shade, blooms briefly, and looks hearty and content even when she’s surely dormant.
We also rake most of our lawn debris into the beds as natural compost. I remove, what, a third of it in spring? I’m not sure why people ever stopped doing this. Perhaps it’s a lawn-person’s thing, instead of a gardener…
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People like to see a green lawn and a lot of covenants demand it. I don’t have lawn in my from yard so it looks fairly natural.
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My winter garden green oxalis swamp. I could try making a something interesting???
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You should try. 😀
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I recall you having your ‘yard’ redesigned. it must be settling in and maturing nicely now.So what is a Princess Tree?
(The use of ‘yard’ in the US always causes me to smile, as here a yard is just that. A paved over space often used for parking, or keeping the bins whereas in your country, yard = flower garden).
🙂
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I did forget about the differences in the term of yard between us. Any yes we did two summers ago now dig up our grass and plant a garden. This year it should really look good. A princess tree (I’ll ad a photo in my post) is a real fast growing tree once established up to 3-5 feet a year. It has huge leaves and gives out plenty of shade.
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