It's Spring!

So! It's still spring for another 6 weeks yet! Here is some evidence of Spring in my garden. Let's take a stroll.

Lavender is a hit in my garden - somehow or another it manages to stay alive and flower every year. Yay!



We have had hundreds of butterflies this year. I keep thinking "Butterflies come from caterpillars," but I haven't seen any caterpillars (or other evidence of them). Not that I have looked very hard.




The pear tree blossoms get better every year. We have had pears before but they are full of grubs - great food for the chooks. I wonder how they will go this year.



We have a border of the lovely yellow daffodils and then I have a pot with 'special' daffodils. I planted them along with hyacinths (which seem to have disappeared) and star flowers. This year only two have bloomed but they are SO gorgeous.




I thought I was going to miss my sweet peas because they were in bud just before we left for Tasmania. This is only the second time in my whole life that I have successfully grown sweet peas. And I grew them more successfully this year than last and maybe I will grow them more successfullyer (How do you spell that?) next year.





And my tulips too! They were in bloom when I got back from Tas but have lasted for ages. There's one in bud too.





Where did that come from? :)



We have these self-seeded poppies which add a cute bit of colour to the garden. The chives are ready to burst forth, and there's a little pansy hanging in there from last year. Hopefully the rose will bloom soon. And the bird bath... we have so many more birds in the garden now that the cats from next door are gone.




I absolutely adore the palest pink blossoms on my crabapple trees.



And now to the front yard. This viburnum, otherwise know as snowball bush, has been growing and blooming heartily every year. (At the moment, and for reasons unknown to me, this photo won't upload - will try again later.) It supplies the children with masses of 'snowballs' to pick, stash, throw, make a mess with.



Last but not least - the rambling rose which has so beautifully made its way to our front door. Opinions are divided. It seems that females like it - they think it is pretty, artistic, cute. Men seem to think I haven't noticed and tell me, when they come to the door, that the rose has grown up there!!! Douglas thinks it makes the place look neglected - I think it makes the place pretty. What do you think?