Whispering trees

I knew the forecast was for heavy rain. The wind was gusting yet all I could hear was a gentle swish. Not the grass whispering but the trees swaying. The garden is surrounded and in some places covered by tall mature trees. They seemed to form an insulating arc around us and the wind sang me a lullaby. Higher up though it must have been rougher. I woke suddenly hearing a rending noise and I feared the worst. Our first real blow and a tree down?

Morning light fed me the comfort of seeing all the soldiers on parade. None had fallen. As the rain fizzled out I walked into the copse and saw a large branch hanging precariously over the boundary fence. I had heard the crackle of the snap and I didn’t want it to pop. I called Davies the Tree and to my amazement he drove down the driveway in less than 5 minutes. Just around the corner, he said, so I thought I’d run round and take a look.

It has to come down he said but it isn’t urgent. It won’t fall today and it is not endangering anybody unless they stand directly underneath. That would probably be you, he added rather needlessly. It is scheduled for treatment on the 18th. An hour later he sent me a text message. What I had heard was indeed trees coming down. They were in the wood behind our next door neighbour but one.  So maybe my branch was already snapped. Still, it will be dealt with.

Since then the weather has gradually improved and the moth trap was in Goldilocks territory last night. Not too full and not too empty. I added 5 species to the garden list. As I walked back to the house at 4.55am I noticed that the Yellow Iris, Iris pseudacorus, had started to open. My day was full as always but as the sun started to drift lower in the sky, filtered to a dapple by the whispering trees, I took a few photos. And here for the sake of good order, is one of them. My garden advisor had thought they were blind, so late they were. All’s well that ends well however and the trees smiled down with me as we celebrated the pond’s first flag.