It's been getting ever colder down South in West Sussex. The thermometer in the shed stayed resolutely at -1 degrees today and made it difficult to do any turning. After chopping some firewood I took my hooks and retired to in front of the stove to sharpen them. Very unusually for down here the snow is still lying. The short track on the other side of our road I use to get to the workshop at the bottom of the neighbours garden has become an ice rink. A very pretty one mind you.
Up on the commons the snow is still crisp, if not deep and even.
The low sun angle through the tangle of trees makes for a very eerie light.
Even the Robins are feeling the cold. Today we were almost mobbed by Robin's and I suspect that they are staying close to see what food we turn up as we walk through the snow and ice. Very sensible too.
One of the reasons for being up on the commons in the snow was to help friends cut Scots Pine trees to use as christmas trees. A rare occasion when you can cut down a tree and help save the environment. This part of Stanley common is permanently growing pine trees which need to be cut to keep them from smothering the heathland. Trees store carbon while they are alive, but release it swiftly when they fall or are felled. The heathland lays down peat which helps to lock carbon into the soil, storing it not just for decades, but potentially for thousands of years.
The birch, the Commons and the Winter Solstice. Enough said I think.
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