According to my friend Geraint Smith, former science editor of the Evening Standard, today is not really the first day of spring. He argues that it is 1 March, St David's Day (he's Welsh, needless to say), and that the season of spring consists of the months of March, April and May. The date of 20 March marks the vernal equinox, he says, not the start of spring. A not unreasonable argument. Whatever, we all know that there have been signs of spring in the garden for a few weeks now. My cherry tree is in blossom, the Clematis armandii is in full floriferous regalia and you can almost hear the sap rising.
(Of course, most of the C. armandii is growing along the top of the fence and up other people's trees. I've never known an armandii that wanted to flower in its own garden. If you're thinking of getting one, plant it next door!)
There is frogspawn in the pond (sorry about the quality of the picture)
The euphorbia is shaking out its fresh lime-green flowers in competition with the cherry blossom. There's sunshine. There's birdsong. And there's ... the sound of lawnmowers and leaf-blowers and pressure washers. Time to go back indoors.
