I feel as if we may have broken into spring. The four days and night above freezing have laid the packed ice bare and if it weren't so bumpy we could skate. But it has also started to leave the grass around the tree on the west side of my house bare and in another day or two most of it may be gone. It is only mid-January and I know this is only the January thaw and that before winter is over we will have several more storms. But the last few warmer days are a relief from the cold and wind of the storm. Before long spring will be here and I can start my regular garden care.

I can’t find the Hellebore above (Helleborus niger) that was blooming before the storm hit in mid-December, and I expect by now that it is fairly flat, crushed under the weight of a succession of snow storms, and wind piling a drift onto that corner below the deck. (I am occasionally lucky with the snow -- the wind blows in just the right direction and I only have to shovel the deck and steps off -- everything else is blown clear.) In mid-December it was just starting to bloom and blossoms would have been visible until late March, or even through April. This plant is a division of a plant in the garden of a friend and client, Doris Olafson. She also insisted I take as many (seedlings) as I wanted of a spring-blooming green Hellebore. Doris died three years ago but these parts of her garden live on in mine.

Helleborus niger after the storm-- I know it is under there someplace. The storm and birds -- I've almost decided bird feeders are too messy, and they attract cats have conspired to hide it. The other Hellebore plants I have are still above the snow and green. Most will bloom in the spring, starting in April, the other, H. foetidissima won't bloom until late summer. In the meantime I'm hoping some more snow will cover up this mess, and spring will help to absorb everything into a layer of compost among the plants in this spot.