17 November 2024 (i start the raking)

i start the raking

where my neighbor finished . . .

sun on birch trunks

16 April 2023 (yard work)

yard work . . .

mist moistens the new

tulip shoots

10 April 2021 (raking)

spring yard work

leaving a few dead leaves

atop the woolly bear

8 April 2020 (chives)

pink moon

a scent of fresh chives

in the raking

7 April 2019 (moss)

spring yard work

raking off the moss

to see some green

2 April 2019 (snowdrops)

last of the snow

raking last fall’s leaves

to find snowdrops

31 March 2019 (lawn)

freshly raked lawn

its potential revealed

to the crow

27 March 2019 (raking)

raking the lawn

around the snow

spring fever

October 17: Fallen leaves

unraked lawn

protecting habitat

for woolly bears

April 9: We discover snowdrops

raking the garden
what's been going on
under dead leaves and snow

March 24: Raking leaves

Because the fair weather has persisted, my husband and I chose today to commence our annual Raking of the Leaves. The day-long activity kept us warm in the chillier air, and the lawns and flower beds now look ready for spring's touch. The lilac and quince bushes already boast fat leaf buds, and tulip leaves push up here and there like green flags waving on the season. We uncovered a few previously undiscovered snow drops and crocuses. We also uncovered quite a few curled up woolly bear caterpillars, which had undoubtedly been hibernating in the heaps of dead leaves around the yard. Knowing the weather is supposed to get even more seasonable soon--i.e. much colder--we tried to put them in places where they'd continue to be protected from the elements.

Don't be fooled. Hang tight,
woolly bear, until spring is
really here to stay.