Finnwas helping me do a bit of weeding in the front garden this morning. 

The perfume around the hyacinths was really strong. 

These daffodils have a delicate scent I wasn't expecting. 

That's one of the things I love about my garden, it always comes up with little surprises. 

The winter flowering pansies are still going strong 

With some spring bulbs in competition. 

I was feeling a bit fed up a week or so ago so I bought myself the brightest, cheapest bunch of flowers I could find. They are still looking good 

and they had about a dozen side shoots which I have sniffed off and put in a glass of water, hopefully they will grow roots and turn into nice young plants. 

Not bad for a couple of quid. 

New beginnings

I was feeling well and truly fed up with looking out of my window at this. I'd already managed to get rid of the pile of trash left from the firewood I was given last year and on Saturday I had bought a magnolia which I have wanted for years so yesterday I decided to tidy up this eyesore and create a new flower bed. 

In the morning I got the bus into Cardigan and bought a bag of ericaceous compost to dig into the ground before planting. It's a good job that the bus stops at the end of the road as 50litres of compost is very heavy to carry! 

After a cup of coffee I started to empty the compost bin and move it to its' new home nearer the house. Uncomposted compost was replaced in the bin and the rest spread over the new bed along with a bag of leaf mould I found lurking behind the bin. The bed was edged with logs and the ericaceous compost dug in where the magnolia was to be planted. 

I transplanted some fuchsias which had been in the same pots for far too long and also last year's spinach which is starting to shoot again. 

I finished at 4 o'clock. Magnolia Susan looks happy in her new home and I hope the fuchsias will be happier here than they were in their pots. A Robin and a dunnock were enjoying themselves scratching round in the fresh soil for insects when I had finished. 

I saw the first butterfly of the year today as well, a red admiral. 

bath time

This little blackbird was enjoying a bath.

 The strange thing was Smudge was watching and the blackbird seemed oblivious.

Spring is springing

There is frogspawn in the bath this morning. I was beginning to wonder whether I was going to get any this year as it has been in the ditch in the fieldat the end of my road for a couple of weeks. 

Ferrero and Roche the goldfish are beginning to be a bit more active now as well although they were a bit camera shy this afternoon. 

The spring bulbs are starting to flower now. The crocus have been out for a few days, closely followed by the hyacinths although some are quicker than others. The first daffodils opened up this morning. 

The helebores are flowering well, I've ordered more so hopefully next year I'll have a carpet of them covering the whole patch outside my front door.
The elephants ears are doing well by the front gate. They should probably be split up soon but they seem so happy there I don't like to disturb them! That seems to be the only place they like.

There's something else that I really must split before long, the day lily. It hasn't been flowering as wellas usual for the last couple of years.

Finn and Smudge were enjoying the sun this afternoon as well.