White as far as the eye can see!
When the winter fog gradually dissipates and the sun shines through trees covered in ice crystals, the garden turns into a glittering still life. For hoarfrost - this rather rare weather phenomenon - to occur, two factors must come together: a relatively high humidity of over 90 percent and a temperature of below -8°C. The cool fog drops then become frost flowers that spread across the window panes of the garden house.
When you take a walk in the winter silence, you can see very clearly whether a garden designer knows his craft and how valuable the so-called structural elements in the garden are: low and high hedges, solitary trees such as evergreen boxwood balls or trellises that structure the property. Freestanding trellises, obelisks and rose arches, which give the stage to the colorful climbing plants in summer, now shine in the cold season themselves. What a fascinating transformation! Thanks to winter and above all to the hoarfrost.
Klaus Krohme captured the magic of nature with his camera in the Steinfurt district educational garden in Münsterland, when the Rose Arches Kiftsgate and Brighton as well as those Rose Column Charleston were covered in white ice.
Metal arbor in winter
It has snowed and the white splendor has a positive effect on the garden. While the ground can easily freeze through to the lower elevations in the event of a black frost, a blanket of snow acts as an insulator and protects many plants from extreme cold. However, the weight of the snow load should not be underestimated. Heavy, wet snow is particularly damaging to evergreen trees such as rhododendrons, boxwood or cherry laurel and causes branches to break. It is therefore worth shaking off the leaves quickly by hand or with a broom after heavy snowfall before the snow freezes over.
The solid iron trellises, on the other hand, do not need any special attention in winter. In the dormant garden or park, the black trellises – Obelisk I and Rose Arch Bagatelle – now slightly enchanted with their white caps. Leif to Baben captured their fleeting beauty in very sensitive photos in the snow-covered Rosarium Glücksburg.
