6 Questions
What does the author compare a garden to?
A request to collaborate with nature
What is unique about the way spring flowers grow?
They nod modestly towards the earth
What is the significance of the cornelian cherry tree?
It is the first tree to flower in spring
What is unique about the way witch hazel flowers grow?
They grow in a frenetic, shambolic manner
What is a distinctive feature of maple trees?
They have a unique, aerodynamic seedpod
What does the author do to appreciate the cornelian cherry tree?
Breaks off a branch to inhale its citrus tang
Study Notes
Observations of Spring
- The first flowers of spring, such as hellebores and snowdrops, nod modestly towards the earth rather than upwards to the sky.
- Hellebores can be found by brushing back the covering of last year's leaves.
- Snowdrops push themselves up out of the hard snow, blooming early in spring.
Woodland Awakening
- As spring progresses, the woods begin to wake up, with leaves no longer crunching underfoot and buds opening on still-naked tree limbs.
Early Tree Bloomers
- The cornelian cherry is one of the first trees to flower in spring, producing barely perceptible yellow dots.
- Breaking off a branch of cornelian cherry reveals an inner citrus tang.
Unique Flowers
- Witch hazel flowers are stringy, shambolic, and umber-colored, with a frenetic shape.
Maple Trees
- Maple trees flower, with their embryonic unfurling dropping into dangling yellow tassels.
- The flowers eventually transform into airplane-wing seedpods that whirligig in the wind before settling down to set seed.
A quiz about the beauty and subtle signs of nature's awakening in spring, from the first flowers to the woods coming alive.
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