We have a holly tree in our garden, which I am keeping a close eye on at the moment. It's more of a big bush than a tree. I don't know how old it is but it was well established when we moved here 27 years ago. It's become quite a character in the family's eyes. It sits there outside, a few feet from the dining room window. Over the years it's been cut back from time to time when it's got so big it's obscured our view of the garden. One year we decided to cut out the lower branches, which made it look more like a tree than a bush and we discovered we had a whole new area of garden to work on underneath. So I under planted it with euphorbias, vinca and ferns. The neighbour's cat hides amongst the undergrowth and Dave the hamster is buried there.
It's not just our family who love our holly tree. It's also loved by the birds. There is always lots of activity around the tree. Birds fly in and out and inside there seems to be always lots of rustling and twittering. It also provides food for them. No doubt there are lots of insects in there, but also there are the berries, the birds love the berries. This year there seems to be more berries than usual.
That is why I am watching the bush very carefully. Every day I look at the holly and admire the clusters of berries which I have watched gradually turn from pale green to orange and now to red. They are beautiful and I keep thinking how wonderful it would be at Christmas to cut some of those branches and bring them in the house to arrange in a big jug or vase. I dream of seasonal evergreen arrangements, a wreath on the front door, a table decoration maybe. But I know it's going to be a race between me and the birds. Who will get to the berries first? Probably the birds will. By mid December the branches could be stripped of those juicy berries.
But I live in hope and as soon as December arrives I shall be out there with my secateurs. I will leave some berried branches for the birds. I wonder if they would leave any for me.
