The old Crabapple tree laden with fruit in late summer... I would like to say Fall but Fall forgot to come this year...
snow came early and softened all that wonderful fruit...
yesterday and today the Cedar Waxwings came... a huge flock, chittering and tweeteling, having a feast of the little apples... they were very hard to see without a closer look, but then I saw them everywhere in amongst the branches...
as they ate being very sociable and sharing with each other, I saw and heard bits and parts of the apples falling to the ground, landing on the snow... it was littered with mushy red apple pieces....
wasn't long before the deer knew about it and joined in... different size groups came and went ... sometimes 5... sometimes 7... sometimes just a mother and a baby...
Snow began falling again this afternoon and looked so pretty... each apple with a little snow cap...
Nature...
it was beautiful to see this ecosystem happening before me and I am thankful for it.
13 comments:
Oh dear, or deer! I love crabapples, I love the look of their trees and the jelly you can make with the fruits. And I love deer. I really envy you for being so close to them.
oh, gwen, yours is so, so gorgeous!
i grew an accidental crab apple once. it thoughtfully grew in an artistic arch midway over our main path from street to house. unplanned, but i could pretend i was master of it all! lol
yes, it made me look good, more than good -- but, most of all, i loved cooking with it!
love the cedar waxwings... wish i saw them more.
Guillaume, next year I will gather some of the little fruits and try my hand at crabapple jelly.. so tart and good on toast. It is much better now that I have a fence for my garden, I don't worry so much about the deer and I can enjoy their beauty and ability to survive in a harsh climate.
Wildside, There is lots of apples for everyone so I will snig some next year... I remember as a child that my grandmother made pickled crabs... I love the architecture of a apple tree. artfully beautiful the way they hang ... especially the ones that reach out from a group of trees in a hedgerow... Nature has a good eye.
Thanks for the pics, friend Gwen … The pic of the wax wings made me chuckle … We have crab apple trees surrounding our hospital parking lot … and one fine Winters day a flock of wax wings came to feast on the fermented crab apples … then the parking lot was literally closed for a couple of hours because the birds were just sitting/ waddling around, and obviously too drunk to fly … Our patients enjoyed that spectacle, and this event even made it into our lil paper … smiles … I see, you have quite a weather in your neck of the woods … Stay warm and stay safe, eh? Love, cat.
PS: I love, love, love your earrings !!!
Hi Cat, Thank you for visiting the wild wood.. oh for sure your patients must have got a kick out of the show the birds put on...These ones didn't get too inebriated.. think it was too cold and the crabs never fermented but... back at the place we just sold.. the winter Robins would get plastered on the fermented Mountain Ash berries.. it was too funny.. It has been a very early cold winter... You stay cozy out your way too.. cheerio, xo
This post would make a lovely essay or children's book!
I saw my first cedar waxwings this fall! They were smaller than I thought but just as beautiful!
I truly love that last photo of yours showing the snow upon those crab apples, for I find that extremely beautiful, and oh, how exciting that must have been watching those birds and deer!
Thank you Laura, inspiration is everywhere. The birds have stayed much longer than I thought they would.. such a pleasure.
Thank you Lon, there is so much more wildlife here than at our last place, it always surprises me. they are all such wonders. Love watching them
Gwen! What a beautiful sight! I LOVE Nature, what beauty she has to offer, thank you for sharing!!! :)
Thank you Rain, Watching the wildlife is such a simple pleasure... and it is all happening there before us .. A Blessing
It is New Year's Eve, Gwen, so just reaching out to send you some warm wishes for good times upcoming! We are each turning a corner, days will be becoming ever slightly more longer, daylight returning... Whether we now want it to or not! Thanks for your encouragement.
Thank you and a very Happy New Year to you Wildside, looking forward to brighter, warmer days, and gardening time.. but for now inside things and all the pleasure they consist of... time to let the imagination have it's way. cheers to a good year to come!!!
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