Spring is really bouncing away now, just like those curly coated lambs with wiggly tails and springs for legs.

Trees that last week were still stark and skeletal are now swathed in green gossamer, and tulips that were tight buds have emerged into a blaze of colours. Unlike previous years, they are flowering at the same time as the daffodils which seem to have been the only bulbs affected by winter’s deep cold.

The smells are quite delicious too - Wallflowers, Daphne and newly mown lawns.

I took a Daphne cutting a couple of years ago - I think it’s a Daphne odora - a slow growing shrub with an eventual height and spread of 1.5 metres, but at the moment it’s not even knee high and looks a bit pathetic. It only has 5 flower clusters, but in the evening, those 5 bunches of tiny blooms fill the garden with a delicious fragrance. Quite amazing.

Magnolia trees are really putting on a good show this year- huge cups of pink tinged flowers or in the case of the Magnolia stellata, starry white fingers of petals like shreds of tissues.

I could go on and on about the spring flowers and all the trees bursting with blossom as, along with the sunshine, it really does lift the heart. I do so hope that it won’t all be spoilt by overdue gales and rain - not just yet - it would be so sad to see all that pink and white confetti being swept away down the drains.

It’s quite a yellow month isn’t it? Daffodils, Primroses, Forsythia and Kerria to name but a few. And Cowslips - nostalgic little flowers from a bygone age. They are really making a come back. I started off a few in the little field by the cottage and it’s so heartening to see how they have spread.

Not forgetting the dandelions either - they are now at their peak - hence the tradition of collecting their bright sunshine flowers on St George’s Day (April 23rd) to make dandelion wine.

Another yellow delight is the custard that I poured over the first rhubarb crumble of the season.