Sunday, February 7, 2010

Hydrangeas in winter...

Say the word “hydrangea” and immediately images of lush green bushes laden with huge blue or pink blooms on warm days come to mind. Hydrangeas seem to have the ability to be elegant and cottagey at the same time, charming us in the garden and as cut flowers. And now there are cultivars that bloom not only in late spring or early summer, but continue throughout the summer.




But what about after the leaves have fallen and it is decidedly winter? What happens to the hydrangea then? Does it become a forgotten cast-off, its purpose already fulfilled for the year? I think not.




In winter, its value becomes more subtle, more architectural. It is no longer a shrub of lush green leaves splashed with the color of its blossoms. Now, it is a display of branches and twigs, silhouetted against the snow. Even though they are alive, they seem to be mostly dead; a reflection of me in the winter-time.




They become symbolic of the waiting game of winter. There is the hope of the fall cuttings growing in the greenhouse, the anticipation of the fulfillment of the leaf bud’s promise, and there are little glimmers of the newness of the coming spring.


Have a beautiful day!

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love all the kitty prints in these pictures.

And that last picture is amazing.

Julie said...

I love hydrangeas, they are some of my favorite plants. Your post on hydrangeas in the winter is lovely.

Julie

Anonymous said...

Okay, Ruth,

Seeing flowers through your eyes is not the easiest thing on my pocketbook! Up to this point, I have not budgeted for flowers/garden past the $15, maybe $20, that I eek out of the food envelope to do a small vegetable garden each summer. Now, it seems I cannot get out of Trader Joes without picking up a plant! (*laughing*) You've missed your calling. You should go into marketing.

One of your loyal readers who just returned from Trader Joes with FOUR plants and two grinning girls.

P.S. One of the containers held tete-tete daffodils. :)

Ruth said...

Well, I have been told that I am a good salesman (woman?), but I think that is funny because I don't think of myself that way. I guess it is because my enthusiasm for something is genuine and contagious. Know anyone who will hire me? :) Thank you for your comment! :) Enjoy your little daffodils!