I’ve lived close to cottonwoods and poplars for most of my life so I am absolutely not surprised to look outside and see that it’s snowing in my backyard. A couple of weeks ago, I looked out and I could actually make out individual grains of pollen standing thickly in the air (thank goodness the rain came to wash it away); now it’s poplar fluff or cottonwood fluff drifting eerily past my window like a cartoon snowstorm with big fat flakes. I once had cottonwood fluff clog up my air conditioner (this is back in the good old Colorado days when it was actually worth having an air conditioner around). Pretty soon there will be enough for me to run out and make fluff angels in the grass, or build a fluffy snowman. We’ll pack it into bags and save it for the winter (it’s very VERY flammable).

I wonder how the bees dodge it.