Post script

October 26th brought – among other things – another hard frost that furnished a post script for my earlier mention of late-blooming flowers and several other images.

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While perhaps I’m not yet ready for cold weather, frosty mornings are so beautiful.

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Stark, maybe, but aesthetically pleasing – to me anyway.

The rising Sun lit up the frozen ground and dispersed early mist..

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It soon turned into a radiant day and as I turned from that window I caught movement through the sliding doors. I went to watch the wild turkeys but thought, “hang on…”

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The seventeen that have been visiting are females and their offspring. That one was a Tom! Furthermore, I spotted another male. I summoned Grant and we took a headcount, a little difficult because they were in constant motion.

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After a couple of counts we agreed that there were at least 28 birds and likely 30!

So had two flocks merged?

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Somehow these didn’t look like the birds we know, but if they’d just joined up with another flock wouldn’t their behaviour change a little while they got acquainted?

There was a fair amount of chasing and posturing going on.

The older male confidently groomed while the youths checked us out.

It wasn’t long before I had the answer to my question, however. The flock of 30 had hardly moved off before the more familiar gang turned up – confirmed by a count of 17 heads.

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We had been referring to them as the girls, but now that the babies have grown, it is clear that many of them are lads.

One evening I saw a whole group of them huddled by the front door as if waiting for admittance.

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The males are identifiable by the snood that is beginning to form above the beak.

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They were clucking at Little Man on the other side of the glass door. He was staring back and chattering as if imitating the birds.

The turkeys offer us much entertainment. I have seen them come by three times in one day, but sometimes we don’t see them for a while. This morning a single individual turned up, no sign of the others.

We hope they will stay around, but do not take the privilege of their visits for granted.

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Earlier, I’d gone out to check on my brave little flower and discovered that it had still not succumbed to the latest frost. By the afternoon it was looking just fine, though in the few days since it has finally gone over, which perhaps it would have by now anyway. I’m not sure how long calendula flowers last.

It was a very brave effort!

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Late-blooming gaillardias were less resilient but they too had made a good show.

Any plant that survives in my garden deserves credit!

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Yarrow seems undaunted by frost and as of November 1st is holding its head up.

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In a frosted state, flowers have a different sort of beauty.

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This was my little flower after more frost the following day.

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