At last we have Snowdrops in flower. The very cold weather seemed to have put them off but they appeared and flowered in double quick time. Within a week of their blooms opening the first purple crocus opened. It will be interesting to see how soon we get our first daffodil.

The reason I mention the daffodils is that I have visited two local gardens and not only do they have snowdrops and crocus but they have daffodils in bud ready to open anytime while ours just have the leaves poking through.

Also just opening are the hellebores. One or two blooms are open but the majority are still in bud and I estimate it will be a week or two before they are in their full and gorgeous glory.

I woke early the other morning and the dawn chorus was magnificent. Who could fail to be lifted by so much beautiful singing? To be heard above all else was the thrush which once again has chosen the top of the tree near to the bedroom window to proclaim its territory. Blackbirds are starting their annual battles to claim their part of the garden, always fun to watch but a very serious matter to them I am sure. And as for the pigeons, left to the males I don't think it will be too long before there are nests and eggs. Must remember to clean out the bird nest box.

The lawns are looking a bit of a mess and it is tempting to start work on them. However, now is not the right time. True there does seem to be a little new growth but certainly that growth is not vigorous enough to start scarifying and aerating. Late autumn would have been a good time to take out some thatch but after the mauling by the badgers I decided to leave it be until the spring. Anyway, scarifying would only have pulled up the grass patches that had been clawed up by the badgers, they had not had enough time to put down fresh anchor roots. A common mistake is to scarify the lawn before strong growth begins. Raking thatch and moss out creates spaces of bare earth that the weed seeds would love to take advantage of and if the grass is not growing that is just what they will do. Scarifiers for lawns come in a variety of styles and power. I bought an electric powered lawn rake that has an interchangeable barrel to convert it to an aerator. It does a brilliant job.

Patience is a virtue in most things and gardening is no exception. Last year I collected seed from a hardy geranium and sowed some fresh to see if it would take. No was the answer and not one seed germinated in the three inch pot I used. The pot has been in the greenhouse all autumn and winter and not even watered. It was tempting to throw the compost out but the pot was just left on the top shelf of the greenhouse staging. Several days ago I went in to check my over wintering plants and noticed some green in the pot. Today I pricked out and potted on a dozen very strong seedlings with long healthy roots. They needed the period of extremely cold weather to break their dormancy and being patient should give me enough plants to create a great show of blue geraniums.

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