Continuing rainfall freshens the greenness of spring and changes the soil from dry and pale to a rich deep brown; lifting the earthy fragrance into the moist air. A host of sparrows peck hungrily in the grass, sourcing some edible feast. Male blackbirds squabble noisily within the laurel hedge, dashing out and chasing one another around the garden; moments later followed by a female who is almost shaking her head in dismay.
A solitary robin sits beneath the hedge, pecking at the weedy growth below.
An unnamed yellow iris is flowering still, its secondary buds opening as the primary ones fade.
A thrust of soft red growth pushes through the phlox, showing promise for new Rosa ‘Sympathie’ stem to be tied in when a little longer.
It is barely half way through the month yet already the first flower on Rosa ‘Aloha’ has just opened and a rush of buds on the other roses are well forward.
