It is wonderful to be able to work in the woodland with no overcoat. The sun is so hot, it is almost T shirt weather – well maybe not just yet!!
Bees are buzzing everywhere, the first one we noticed was a bumble bee who was wallowing in the crocus which were all open wide. While working on my knees amongst the bulbs I was being buzzed all the time, they are still visiting the snowdrops and have now discovered the hellebores which have opened at last.
We have seen our first ladybird
and now , have frogspawn in our pond, this is much later than usual.
Iris unguicularis is now back into flowering mode once more.
A lonely grape hyacinth is flowering in the woodland, I don’t remember planting this, wonder where it came from, as there are no others anywhere near it.
Narcissus Tete a Tete is starting the main flush of the yellow narcissus . Lovely small bulb, soon everywhere will look as though it has been brushed with yellow paint and that the sun is shining even on a dull day.
Pulmonarias are flowering everywhere, most of them are the ordinary one which seeds everywhere, but at this time of year they are very welcome.
Crocus tommasinianus is now feeding all the bees, a honey bee just didn’t want to be photographed,
got it this time though,
and again!!!
This small lilac coloured flower belongs to Cardamine pratensis, and has been planted to attract Orange Tip butterflies. This is spreading slowly and looks very pretty carpeting the woodland floor.
All the hellebores have now recovered from the heavy frosts and snow and are now looking fantastic, so many lovely ones, they will have a post all to themselves.
All these flowers are there for the bees that have woken up with the warmer weather and I can rest happy knowing that the larder is well stocked with pollen and nectar. They have plenty of food and they, in their turn, are pollinating all my plants for me. So much is rushing into flower at the moment, so many new flowers each day, we will still have more frosts – hope they can all cope.