Anticipating Armageddon

 Well not quite. The trouble is we remember the similar weather pattern which is forecast from tomorrow happening last year. It devastated all the new young growth on the trees and other plants and the garden took a couple of months to recover, so we have tried to take precautions. Of course it is impractical to cover everything but it still took the two of us all afternoon to build the barricades throughout the garden. You may be sure that after all our efforts the weather will not be as bad as we fear. (Snow, -3 deg C, 50kph gusts!) Had we done nothing it would be worse than forecast.

John has moved the majority of his bonsai under  cover. No mean feat as many are in large pots.

Watch this space for further updates as we are vulnerable until next Wednesday.

More Flowers

 Sorry if I am boring you but these are a few flowers that are looking particularly good in the garden at the moment.

Just fear that they may be ruined on Friday when the scheduled snow arrives.

Out With The Old

 Despite John having Covid (I tested negative) we are gardening flat out. The weather has been super so we have spent the "odd moment" on the front terrace with a glass in hand pondering and admiring the garden. During one of these reflective times we decided that the lavender plants in the lavender beds at the end of the serpentine bed looked old and tired and should be replaced. I commented that we should look out for some new plants when they are on offer. Low and behold that turned out to be this week and the price was even better than last year. Of course we rushed off and bought 40 plants and John cleared the old ones away. 

A couple of days later (with another glass in hand) John reflected that we should really throw away  the lavender plants in the rose beds. I was not confident that there would be any of those on promotion left, (John said that not many people buy plants in the quantities we do) but I was wrong and we came home with another 30.

So he cleared and edged the rose beds.

The lavenders are now being hardened off preparatory to planting. However this glorious weather is scheduled to break and be replaced by sub zero temperatures at the weekend. All the new growth will be hit like last year.... but this year I have a Plan!

Love is in the Air

 The wildlife is convinced that Spring has arrived ... and to prove it our kestrels have returned and reclaimed residence in the hole in the wall of the house. Whilst the female is presumably laying eggs in the nest, the pair can be seen on the roof of our barn behind the house ...

... or at the top of the old Ash tree at the beginning of the alley.

Let's hope that they have a successful season without any interruptions from other kestrels!

It's Spring ...

 ... and they are back!

A carefully dug hole/ burrow/ warren in the sand and earth of the Exotic Bed.  We will have to be on our guard to fill the holes as soon as they make them!

Whilst we're talking about wildlife, we put some chicken bones out at the end of our alley and waited.  First came the night shift.

When the morning shift arrived there was nothing left for the Backbird!

Then we had the travelling circus.

 

But the garden is showing signs of Spring.  I've mown the lawns down to their 'low' height and started edging the beds and straight away the garden looks tidy (even though there is lots of weeding to be done). 

 The first tulips are out,

and the daffodils and grape hyacinths (muscari) and making a lovely display.

The benefits of planting thousands of bulbs!!!

Icing the Cake

 We have been a bit delayed since we last posted about the 'Wedding Cake' ... we have been on a flying visit to the UK to see friends and then, on our return, we had rain and winds!  But today was favourable and Sue set to with a will to plant up this new bed.

Whilst it is difficult to make out, there is  Hydrangea Annabel in the centre, then a ring of 6 white Fairy roses and then on the outside, 26 Iberis.  There will also be 21 dwarf white Dahlias to go in because we had a delivery of plants which included the dahlias even though the Head Gardener couldn't remember ordering them or where they were for!

Despite the weather being rainy and windy, Spring is making a determined effort to cheer us all up (and don't we need it!!!)  Our Anemone Blandas are flowering up the alley and making more of a show each year.  Our daffodils along the side of the alley are providing a happy yellow border, our reorganised Grape hyacinths (Muscari) are making a blue ribbon along the edge of our front grass and the tulips are on their way.  The Prunus Incisa is at last in bloom to the delight of the bumble bees.

But the miracle of this Spring is the sudden and unexpected blooming of a carpet of Violets the length of the alley.  Quite why we are unable to say.  Whether because I cleared all of the leaves off of the grass, whether we had rain at the right time ...? 

However we are just so thrilled to see Nature in action, even though we have to be careful where to tread amongst all the blooms!