Magnificent magnolias

This time of year I am captivated by the Magnolia Grandiflora that came with the garden when we moved here all those years ago. At that time it was tiny. spindly and struggling in a very crowded part of the garden. I have no idea how long it had been there but while that over-crowding persisted for the next few years it made scarcely any progress - it simply held its own, staying alive but getting no bigger and never flowering. Then we took out two thuggish conifers and it found that it had light and breathing space and it began to grow and in gratitude produced a flower or two each year.  A couple of years later we took out a honey suckle and its collapsing pergola  and gave the magnolia nothing more competitive than a summerhouse to cast its shade over and it has been truly magnificent and flourishing ever since. Each year I find myself smiling when I reach the point where I realise I have lost count of the flowers for the season.

The leaves are rich, green and glossy on the top and a russet velour on the underside. Yes, there is a time in late spring when it drops a lot of them onto the lawn but that is all in preparation for the tour de force about to happen.

The petals are luxuriously thick with the texture of finest glove leather and an exotic, lemony scent. The central boss defies all the thick scuptural quality of the leaves and petals with an intricate arrangement of stamens. Even when the flower is spent and the petals fall there is still something fascinating to look at. The boss having dropped its stamens now looks like delicate little brush with a magenta handle.

 I love the parchment colour of the fallen petals. The other day while I was out indulging in my admiration for this tree I noticed  these two dropped petals in particular.

I make no secret of the fact that I like to dabble when it comes to crafts but I found myself wishing that I had the skills and know-how to replicate these in some form of pottery.  Wouldn't they would be wonderful little dishes with their upturned handles and glazed with that speckled mixture of cream and caramel? Somehow I can't see any great satisfaction in attempting the replication in any of the fabric and yarn crafts I have tried. I feel compelled to record the inspiration here, never-the-less. May be one day...

Something completely different

This post is a departure from my usual reports on the pursuit of small joys and tiny pleasures. I haven't been cooking or crafting or buzzing around the beautiful countryside where I live for over 2 weeks now.
The main reason for this is that out of the blue I have been diagnosed with cancer of the colon. To go from feeling amazingly fit and healthy to being in hospital in a matter of a couple of days has taken some 'coping with' both for me and for those nearest and dearest. It was however one of those just in the nick of time discoveries and I was truly blessed and fortunate to have been among some exceptionally compassionate and skilled professionals and to have the amazing support of wonderful friends. 
I am home again, patched up and told to build up my weight in order to prepare for surgery in a few weeks' time. In case you have ever wondered, a low fibre, high calorie diet sheet looks like something a ten year old with no concept of basic nutrition would dream up. Most of the things my GP has urged me to reduce to infrequent treats in order to keep my cholesterol within bounds, are back on the list and many fruit and veg are either off or in small amounts. Such a shame when the garden and the local markets are coming into the most productive time of year.
Day by day I feel I am regaining strength and energy and mastering the new regime. I will take each step as it comes and I have gained some sense of proportion about the whole thing. In short I will be back buzzing about indulging in the kinds of things I love to do and recording them here. No doubt there will be further gaps in posting from time.But this disease doesn't define me.