Winter

Winter color is subdued in the Tawes Garden but it's there, and contrast abounds.  The fountain’s spray in the sun through bare trees is a study in chiaroscuro.   The dead stems of Black-eyed Susans stand up starkly in snow against a background of dark Yew.  Brighter color, when it does suddenly appear, can seem almost shocking, like the yellow-green fronds of Autumn Ferns against brown oak leaves.  Similarly, an anonymous pond plant, quite unfazed by the cold, floats vivid, delicate stars above the dun bottom debris.  In contrast to its living form is the rigid geometry of snow on patio benches.  As Winter slowly starts to wane, lines soften like the ice on the pond, and by the end of March there will be daffodils in bloom.