It was a dark and snowy night…
This is not normal for Victoria. The snow might be pretty but this is a rain-forest. We’re not set up for snow. Neither are our gardens.
Tonight’s concern is the snow load on the hedging. It’s amazing how flexible some branches can be as snow gathers & literally weighs them down. But some wood fibers are breaking as the branches bend. The sooner the weight is removed, the more likely a branch is to bounce back & resume its regular shape for good.
Out comes my trusty rake. Wielding it backward, I thrust the pole end into the lowest branches & give the shrub a light shake.
It’s best to start low & gradually work up. Release the load from lower branches before risking adding more to them with the snow falling off upper branches.
Once broken, there’s no mending a branch. All those years of growing into a full-sized shrub…
the lovely shape…
our increased privacy…
can be ruined overnight. Heart-wrenching.
Although hedgers like yew & cedar are especially susceptible, same goes for the broadleaf evergreens. Rhododendron.
Strawberry Tree.
Camellia.
Flower buds are already well-formed on the rhodos & camellia. So if I want many blooms this spring, it requires a delicate shake to remove the snow & only the snow.
After that, it’s good to head inside, dry off & treat myself to a hot chocolate (with Frangelico). After all, it’s a dark and snowy night…
-30-
Garden Variety Life 
Down here at the Gorge, it was “All is calm. All is bright” at 4 a.m. Tuesday. So peaceful. But, like you, I was out there because the snow needed to be shaken off the evergreens and shovelled off the sidewalk for the postie. Fortunately, it was six inches of very light powder. Happy to be working from home!
More than anything, it just seems shocking to have SO MUCH snow. The first 2 nights were light & fluffy loads, but the 3rd was HEAVY & WET. Bow I can hardly believe the snowdrops & winter aconite are smiling as the snow disappears…