501 - OKAY I GIVE IN - A BIT

Bowing to popular demand I give in (a bit).

Spring is just about thinking about springing though we have had wintry showers a lot - hail and such.

My brother and his wife came over and delivered his plastic heron to stand by the pond, deter other herons and protect our frogs and voles.

I placed it as shown - it had to be back a bit as I could not puncture the pond liner.

 All was sweetness and light until the next morning when, looking out of the bedroom window I saw we had - two herons!
The plastic one on the lower left and the real on at the top right - very effective n'est-ce pas? (Yes I have the odd word of foreign languages - mainly I say "I am English and do not speak French or whatever.") (I know - typical Englishman.)

So, I have just scalped the lawns for the first time as the grass was dry - small mower set on mulch. Quite a lot of the garden is still too boggy for the sit-on.

Here are over pots of house daffs waiting to be out in the garden. I am not sure how well the paperwhites will do but time will tell.

5 squirrels and counting caught so far in the latest attempt at control - they have eaten all the crocuses on the banking - apparently a favourite food. So, what with rabbits eating the fritillaries and squirrels the crocs - phew!

Other bulbs are, however, flowering like these delightful small iris and daffs.

Then there are the hellebores -

and finally the orange day lilies - thugs with tenacious roots. I have tried digging them out but there are bits of root everywhere so I may have to POISON them!! It is interesting that I cannot snuff out a squirrel but a day lily - no reservations whatsoever.

So there you are - another blog - a bit like darts - 501 down etc.

And for G and L who are getting withdrawal - COMPOST! There I have mentioned that too.

And I did not mention the chaffinch with deformed legs scratting across the paving but surviving - for now.

And I did not find my gold signet ring even with a metal detector.

Sad.