Greensleeves

lichenous tree in snowstorm 1

Yesterday morning’s small rain turned into fat snowflakes by mid-afternoon. I went out for a walk with camera and umbrella. Because of the soaking rain that had preceded the snow, the lichens and mosses on the tree trunks were still a vivid green, contrasting nicely with the snow. For an hour and a half, I kept shooting variations of the same photo.

lichenous tree in snowstorm 4

The snow was exceptionally sticky, making for the most picturesque snowfall of the season. Something like six inches fell here. By this morning, even though the wind had scoured the treetops, snow still clung to all the lower branches, getting thicker the closer it got to the ground. If someone from a country without snow had seen this, they might have imagined the ground was mounting an insurrection against the sky, which was as achingly blue as it ever gets in January.

lichenous tree in snowstorm 5

But this is March: the sun is much higher in the sky, and getting warmer as the day goes on, so it’s all turning to mush. A classic onion snow, I’d say, even if the wild onions have barely broken ground. The trees, at least, are sporting that scallion green.

Click on the photos to see larger versions on Flickr.

9 Replies to “Greensleeves”

  1. Thanks, folks. Two days on, it’s more of a struggle to like the stuff. I’m sure it will be gone soon enough, though — only a couple inches now in most places.

  2. Loved these, despite having just shoveled two new feet off the drive and unburied the car–now I run, as it is Wonderland-busy, and one must run to keep in the same place–

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