Writing v Working

I have once again discovered that writing about gardening is considerably easier than actually working in the garden. However, I did manage to spend the whole afternoon gardening and it was very pleasant. The sun finally came out and it almost seemed like Spring. I managed to finish the pruning and for once got to the honeysuckle and clematis before they got hopelessly entangled.

As we have had a mild winter most of the plants seemed to have survived and it is lovely to see the new shoots on the herbaceaus plants. The Clematis montana is already in bud and it won't be long before we have some lovely blooms. There are good strong shoots on the roses, but I also noticed the first aphids - that means I will have to spray within in the next few days. If you leave it too long you will be overtaken by aphids and blackspot and not come to grips with it all summer.

I noticed a large clump of sweet violets in the lawn by the shed - a lovely sight and a reminder that Spring is almost here and the warmer days are not too far away. It will be Easter in two weeks and I'm hoping for warm weather and not too much rain so that I can begin planting to fill those gaps in my borders.