My A-Z posts this year
are based on my garden – flowers, animals, the birds and the bees, butterflies
- with a bit of poetry thrown in. For some letters I am expecting to cheat
somewhat – wishing they were here.
N – Narcissus, Nicotiana, Nuthatch, Newt
Although we have daffodils (D) in the garden they are
outnumbered by a long way by this more delicate flower. Normally they flower in
April but this cold winter and spring has delayed their appearance.
 |
| Narcissus |
Given that Narcissus the youth was the vainest of the vain,
are we right to assume that the Narcissus flower represents vanity?
Nicotianas on the other hand are ideal for decorative pots
and are available in a variety of colours.
 |
| Nicotianas |
Some birds are difficult to see and even more difficult to
photograph; the tree creeper is one such and here is another we rarely see.
 |
| Nuthatch |
The nuthatch he so
agile be
As head first he
descends the tree
Although it’s quite common for us to see young frogs, newts
are far from common; there are some in next door’s pond. Shakespeare’s witches
might have problems here to fulfill their recipe.
In the caldron boil
and bake;
Eye of newt, and toe
of frog,
 |
| Common Newt |
Newts and blind worms
do no wrong.
If gardeners need reminding of that, then they should also
follow this advice:-
When the newt on my
boot
Asked me not to
pollute
I told him I’d give
it a try.
Poems/Quotations:
- The Nuthatch – James Charteris
- Eye of Newt – Macbeth, Second Witch – William Shakespeare
- Newts – Midsummer’s Night Dream – William Shakespeare
- When the newt… - Joe Mohr
Photos:
- Nuthatch – Tony Hisgett, Birmingham – CC BY-SA 2.0 – Upload Magnus Manske
- Newt – Silverstrpher, Scotland – CC BY-SA 2,0 – Upload Sandy Rae
