The wind howls, but the sun shines brilliantly as temperatures slowly rise from the upper teens on this early December morning, hopefully to warm to the upper thirties by midday. No chores are planned for this chilly day, but as I stroll the garden, there will be a weed to pull so that it doesn’t drop its seeds or a fallen branch to clean up.

Larger branches, usually from maples and tulip poplars that overhang the side garden, are discarded into piles (above) that could possibly shelter wildlife, though I have yet to witness signs of life. The smallest branches are snapped into pieces and dropped as mulch, falling amongst layers of leaves from the garden’s many trees. While most of the ground covering leaves are brown, for a few more days I’ll enjoy the blanket of red from the ‘Bloodgood’ Japanese maple along the front walk (below).

Long ago, I shredded all leaves in areas bordering the forest for a tidier look, and so leaves would decay more quickly. But in recent years, I’ve skipped this step, only removing leaves from paths and patios and from hellebores that will soon begin their flowering. The decaying leaves that cover much of the garden are the garden’s mulch and fertilizer, and I suppose some beasts overwinter beneath this undisturbed blanket. I don’t mind that the whole leaves take months longer to decay and don’t care at all about the lack of tidiness.

I see a squirrel attempting to drink from the shallow granite bowl atop a stone pillar by the driveway. Of course, the water is still frozen, but perhaps it will thaw before temperatures fall again this evening. With shorter garden walks in the chill, the antics of squirrels are greatly appreciated. The social interactions between squirrels but also between various birds are quite entertaining, viewed from the sunroom that looks down on the garden.

Water levels in the garden ponds have dropped due to evaporation and our continuing lack of rainfall, so the recirculating pumps have been turned off. Four of five ponds are covered by a thin layer of ice that is likely to come and go through the winter months. The pump in the deep koi pond continues to run, so it is the only open water at the moment.

The red shouldered hawk has returned to its regular perch, monitoring activity around the bird feeder just outside the sunroom. Smaller birds are cautious at first, but then resume feeding without fear that the large bird can maneuver through branches. Squirrels are more cautious, but finally, they return to harvest seed that birds have dropped to the ground. Occasionally, the hawk will dive to the small pond between the sunroom and feeder, but whatever prey is protected today by this thin layer of ice.