Monday, March 22, 2010

'What's wrong with our crocuses?'

... was what Tom asked when he saw I'd been photographing and posting other people's.

'I've photographed purple crocuses before'  I said with a shrug.

As if, like the Athenians, and all the strangers that were there, we can spend out time in nothing else but to tell or hear of some new thing.   As if spring hasn't been here before, and as if it doesn't knock us over every time.   But this year more than ever, I'm certain.  The crocuses are most particularly intense, I seem to see and hear of them everywhere, in the earth, in pictures, in the words and images of others.

And our purple crocuses ( I generally eschew Latin plurals, and 'croci' sounds very disagreeable) are looking rather fine, among the leaf litter and chestnut husks and shells of last year.






The hellebores don't look bad either,




and nor do the tiny daffodils, by next door's wall.


We've arrived, they all say, we said we would, what were you worrying about?  The others'll be along shortly, let the party begin...

14 comments:

Catalyst said...

I love your photographs!

herhimnbryn said...

As I type we are having the first rains of the season...such a relief.
Then I find your images and I am homesick for the Spring of Europe. Those purples are stunning.

Unknown said...

We're still waiting for most of the daffodils in these parts to flower, but it has struck me that a long winter is what spring needs to be at its best. It is as though by being held back, the spring's release is all the more energetic and spectacular.

Rouchswalwe said...

I had to bring my brolly to work today. The green tips of Iris leaves are showing themselves, but my crocus didn't make an appearance at all this year. Hmmm. So nice to see your flowers!

J Cosmo Newbery said...

Absolutely glorious!

Sheila said...

Ah, life coming fullswing once again! These are beautiful!

(And I wish you could have heard the joke I heard Saturday night. We got to be in the live audience of a radio show called "Says You," from Boston. A bunch of writers who answer questions about words and phrases and laugh a ton in the process. The category was spring flowers, and the clue was something like "What gangsters might do to us if we crossed them...."

Happy spring!

Roderick Robinson said...

Croci. Sounds like the plural form of - to spare all our blushes - that part of our body where bifurcation begins. Alternatively it is a legitimate acronym for Capital Return on Capital Invested, although the day you find the need to include that in Box Elder is the day I may go off you. In any case isn't it a long-winded way of saying "interest" (of the fiduciary sort).

Crafty Green Poet said...

lovely photos, our crocuses and snowdrops have been wonderful this year, looks like the daffodils will be lovely too

apprentice said...

Yes the cold was worth it to see these amazing colours burst forth again. I always think Cadbury's cream eggs stole their colours from the crocus.

zephyr said...

Oh yes...wonderful photos.
Our crocus are just finishing...and the miniature iris. The first tiny daffs are not opening.

marly youmans said...

Mmm. We finally had some rain instead of snow. Snowdrops. Some crocuses. Aconite.

D. Jean Quarles said...

Your photos are beautiful. Very pretty. The flowers aren't so bad either. :)

Bee said...

The intense close-up of the crocus is just so beautiful. I always think crocuses are so clever about the time they've picked to bloom. Who would notice them in May, but after a flower-starved winter they are such scene-stealers.

Our daffodils JUST started blooming yesterday. I've never known them to be so late.

Granny J said...

Oh, the boat pictures were spendid, but then I scrolled down and was rewarded with Spring COLOR and I just had to go "oooh"! Thank you!