Foxes in the Grass

A family of foxes hiding in the grass
Showed off their rusty tails as I walked past.
A family of foxes hiding on the hill
Not a sound did they make, hiding oh so still.

A tiny yellow bird landed on the biggest one
Pecking, poking here and there and having lots of fun.
As quickly as she landed, she gently flew away
​I wondered why the foxes let her poke them in this way.

And then that tiny little bird whispered in my ear
"Go and touch that furry tail, you do not need to fear."
And so I tip toed in the grass to that family
And touched the biggest rusty tail oh so carefully.
It wasn't soft and fluffy, but really kind of dry
"It's not a fox at all, but a big old weed!" I cried.

I rubbed and rubbed that big old tail in my dirty hand
And lots of tiny seeds fell like little grains of sand.
"That, my friend is a curly dock" the happy birdie said
"I like to eat their tiny seeds, so rich and scarlet red."

And as the birdie flew away, I gave a little laugh
​How fun it is to think of foxes hiding in the grass!

Brown and grey
Brown and grey
What does the winter garden do all day?

White and brown
White and brown
Nothing much to hear, it doesn't make a sound.

Ho and hum
Ho and hum
Grey and brown makes me feel all glum.

Then a voice said "ho!"
"Look below!
Take a little moment now and say 'hello!'"

Beside my boot
In his green suit
He said "I am the one who tends the root!"

"You might say
It's brown and grey
But just you wait til one spring day!"

"Soon the roots
Will send up shoots
And you'll see flowers in the month of May!"

Then the wee gnome
Hid behind a stone
And burrowed down below to his earthen home.

Though brown and grey
On this winter's day
The garden really DID have a lot to say!

 written by Christine Summerfield / March 7, 2019

Jewel in the Crown
                                                                                          
A field full of weeds
   as the summer sun burns...
The old ones recede
   and the new take their turns...

Blossoming now on the warm summer stage
Enters the King as we turn the page...

Standing tall with scepter of thorns
His purple flowers await to be born.
Filling his crown with flowers bright
​Like amethyst jewels they shine in the light.

With his prickles sharp, no one comes near
Instilling respect and a wee bit of fear!
But the winged ones know of his royal treasures
They dig for his gold with fervor and pleasure!
For his flowers are softer to the touch
​The bees and the butterflies like them so much!

​And when the jewels fade away from the crown
They change to brittle, dry rusty brown
But the gold finch knows of the treasures inside
Quickly she lands and knows where they hide. 
She mines all day in a cloudy white puff
Filling her beak with seeds from the fluff!

After the seeds from the rusty old crown
The last gift remains, the gift of the down.
Silky and soft, the gentlest of all
Will line the nests of the finches so small.

A Wall of Happy Houses

A wall of happy houses is just along the street
Full of every color for the birds who like to sing tweet tweet!
 
The colors make a rainbow of yellow, blue and green
Orange bright and violet and pinks of shiny sheen!
 
This neighborhood’s for winged ones, for finches red and blue
Who play and fly and sing all day: “Tra Lee, Tra Lah, Tra Loo!”
 
They never seem to argue or get into a fight
They’re much too busy singing and playing in the light!

Madame Chartreuse

Have you heard the news?
Did you all hear hear?
I have some little clues...
About a guest who's here!

She is a color like no other
Come and take a peek
Half of one and half of the other
She is quite unique.

She brings a special kind of sheen to places in the shade
A mix of yellow and of green, she is on parade!

Other kinds of greens do grow
in my garden fair
Avocado, Forest Green
Sage and Moss and Pear.

And then there is Pistachio
Granny Apple too
Effervescent Lemon Lime
Will make you say "At Choo!"

​But this one is fluorescent green
She comes from South East France
A cordial made by silent monks
From one hundred plants!

She has a very special name
It is La Grande Chartreuse
Yellow Green and luminous
One you can't refuse!

Here's a few of her plants in my garden bed
She paints the flowers and the leaves, they'll make you turn your head!

Hellebore of Corsica is greeny-yellow gold
Her foliage is evergreen even in winter's cold.
And then Hydrangea shrub is there, her name is Annabelle
Her flowers are so delicate, she's quite the Mademoiselle.
And then there is a carpet wild that runs along the ground
Creeping Jenny she is called, she does not make a sound.