The pond in December.

The kids are out on winter break and Christmas is less than a week away.  It seems as if this year has flown by!  We still have some candy making to do and presents to buy, but other than that we're excited and ready for the holidays.
After all the rain we had last week, we've enjoyed some nice dry days, even saw a good amount of sun outside!  It's been feeling cold again lately, although nowhere near as cold as it is in other places.  I planted a few Violas in some containers yesterday and once again my deck is clear of plants waiting to go in the ground.  I wonder how long that will last?  I've also been reading through my seed catalogs, my favorite right now being the Botanical Interests one.  I think I love their artwork on the seed packets as much as the seeds.  (I'm not being paid to mention them, just truly love their products from personal experience.)  I've been circling lots of seeds that I want to try even though last spring I thought I wouldn't be starting much from seeds this year.  It was a wet and frustrating spring and summer and I didn't have much luck.  But, once Christmas is over I will be putting my order in.  There isn't much more rewarding than flowers blooming that were started from seed in your own garden.

There's not much activity in the pond right now, the fish swim around on warmer days, but mostly rest near the bottom.  Little flocks of birds come by to to bathe.  I love watching how some will balance on the edge of one of the submerged pots to get a drink while others like to roll around in the waterfall.

 I'm trying to figure out how to get some more evergreen plants in the pond area.  At the back of the pond and to the left towards the shed there's quite a bit, but from this angle almost everything has died back for winter.  It's difficult to find space because once spring is here, there will be so much filling in.  This might be the year that I redo the right side of the pond and organize it a little better.

 Right now I'm depending on the Heucheras to add color.  This is 'Autumn Bride'.  It takes quite a bit of afternoon sun which surprised me.  Most Heucheras, especially the lighter ones, seem to like part shade for the afternoon.

 Another Heuchera (can't remember it's name now)  which grows in a group with Heuchera 'Petite Pearl Fairy', 'Marmalade' and near Japanese Blood Grass.

 I think this is a tassel fern.  I planted it a long time ago and it does great right by the pond.  The new growth has a fuzzy texture which adds a lot of interest too.

The Littlest Gardener has her winter ballet performance today which we're looking forward to seeing.   She's been my biggest helper with Christmas this year, being only 4 she's just beyond excited about it.