The forecast is calling for frigid air. The cold will soon send everything into a wintry dormancy. I picked some ivy today to root in water as a last of 2016 cutting. The tiny holly tree beside the ivy is a volunteer. I will soon have to decide what to do with it; the space it is growing in is in front of the gas meter and it will need to be moved.

Holly and ivy have been a mainstay of British Christmas decoration for church use since at least the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, when they were mentioned regularly in churchwardens’ accounts. ~ Wikipedia

Ivy is an often overlooked Christmas Green.

The ‘Holly and the Ivy’ is an old Christmas Carol that tells the story of Jesus.

“The holly and the ivy,
Now both are full well grown.
Of all the trees that are in the wood,
The holly bears the crown.

Chorus
Oh, the rising of the sun,
The running of the deer.
The playing of the merry organ,
Sweet singing in the quire.

The holly bears a blossom
As white as lily flower;
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
To be our sweet Savior.

The holly bears a berry
As red as any blood;
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
To do poor sinners good.

The holly bears a prickle
As sharp as any thorn;
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
On Christmas day in the morn.

The holly bears a bark
As bitter as any gall;
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ
For to redeem us all.

The holly and the ivy,
When they are both full grown,
Of all the trees that are in the wood,
The holly bears the crown.

http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wK60zxmctI