WHAT TO DO IN A CAR-PARK

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Hospital car-park.  March 17th 2014

I've spent a lot of time in car-parks recently; waiting . . . waiting while the driver had a dental check-up . . . went into a garden centre . . . bought chips . . .

If it hadn't been raining, I would have taken the opportunity to scout around and look for wild plants in the borders and at the edge of the road . . . and pictures for my other blog, Message in a Milk Bottle. But it seems always to be raining. We had months of rain. Rain seemed to be a perpetual state. And now it's March . . . we're having April showers. There are sunny moments. But, well, whether it's raining or showering I don't like to take my camera outside.

There are special 'seeing' challenges in car-parks. They are not the kind of places people like to linger. They are boring. They are a bit dangerous. There's nothing there except cars . . . or . . . except . . .

Someone decided to put trees in squares cut through tarmac and the idea caught on. Trees (like blobs on sticks) are stuck in the ground in car-parks all over the land. If I'd thought of it, I would have put them bang in the middle of parking spaces so drivers could aim at them and stop just short. It might have made it easier to line up straight. But the fashion is to put them at the corners with the point of each square intruding into the space allocated for each car. This way they are neither trees nor targets but annoying bollards.

Then there are hedges. Hedges aren't universally present in car-parks but they are sometimes used to divide one section from another. (See picture at top of page.) In car-parking-hurrying-to-get-to-an-appointment mode - they are merely barriers. Fences would do just as well. But they are living plants. Once noticed they may not turn out to be very interesting . . . but they are there . . . and if we were to look closely (which we might if it weren't for the rain!) there is bound to be something to see.

Hospital car-park.  March 17th 2014

But because of the rain I've been sitting in the car, front and back, and taking pictures through rain spattered windows instead of taking the camera outside; or opening a door and pointing my lens through the crack.






All of a sudden . . . there are trees!

Garden Centre. Car-park March 25th 2014

Trees stuck in the middle of the garden centre car park. (While we're here . . . don't you think garden centres could make a little more of their land? I expect some do but I know three reasonably well and they might as well sell paint.)

Trees in the car-park outside the chip shop and the hardware store and the newsagent's and . . .. 

Car-park for local shopping centre . . . small shops and doctor's surgery. March 25th 2014

This local shopping centre car-park-tree has a nest in it.

There's so much to see in a car-park, even without leaving the car! (And I suspect hardly anyone notices, we generally just rush by.)

Car-park for superstore. March 25th 2014

Trees outside the superstore. See the catkins?

When summer comes, maybe we'll return and see what plants have sprung up around them.

Do you have un-noticed trees in squares in the car-parks near you?

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THE SOGGINESS OF AUTUMN

This patch of Willow Herb is always striking
Click HERE for what it looked like in September 2011
(You'll need to scroll down.)

My camera has been away to be mended. The sun shone while it was away. As soon as it's come back, the light goes and the rain pours down as if heaven is emptying its bath water.

These blackberry leaves are pretty tatty and may fall.
But they may not.
For leaves from 2011 in March 2012
Click HERE.

Then there was a moment, not a long moment, but a moment long enough to dash out and dash back before it began to drizzle; a slow, steady shower from the gods. If it were spring, it would be welcome. Sliding through the mud, I wished my camera had come back yesterday. Trying to focus on sodden seeds, sodden everything, it seemed as if nature itself had gone out of focus, I thought 'no post here!'.

From the sky, you might think this was taken early in the day or in the evening.
No. Twenty past ten in the morning.

(It's very annoying.
I know I've taken a picture of this view before but can't find it.
When I do - I'll give the link.)

But there it is. Autumn.

I nearly said it's now 'winter' because these outlines will stay the same right through to spring - petrified reminders of last summer. But the air is warm. It's still autumn.

Now my camera's back, it can snow if it likes for all's right with my world - even if it is raining.

And the view we are following?

Pretty murky too.

For what this looked like on September 21st 2012
scroll down the post for the beginning of October.
Not a lot has changed so I've drawn back to give a wider view.

That's autumn for you!

Tree Following
Donna at Garden's Eye View
has a Tree Following Post
'Surrender'

If you have a recent tree following post
let me know
and I'll add a link here.

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