A Cautious Hope

My 2017 'bulb bed' has returned!  Mainly crocus so far, and a few squills.

       It may actually be spring soon. It's snowing at the moment, of course, but I have actually been outdoors working in the garden two days this week - one other day I tried, but there was a howling North gale and I just couldn't take it, my most detested kind of weather. The temp was +3 but the wind chill was -10. It was warm in the hoop house, but I couldn't stay in there all day! I have already tidied up and sorted all the pots. I have concluded that I really need to build some staging - high enough to be easy on the back, and with room underneath for storage (of pots and other stuff).  What I have now are plywood shelves balanced on plastic buckets. Not ideal. Anyway, next week the weather is looking better, with actual double-digit daytime temperatures and slightly above freezing night-time ones. I am looking forward to getting some of the seedlings out of the house and into the hoop house. I am willing to hook up the electric heater out there if the temps go below zero again, but I think they really need the light - and I really need the space - if only to start more seedlings. So, once they're out, they are staying out. Unless it goes to -10 or something.

         I have some snowdrops out! Seven or eight small clumps so far. They are the ones that I planted 'in the green' last spring, and I am so pleased to see them! They are all coming up in my woodland garden. The ones I planted from bulbs the fall before that (November 2016) are just starting to poke up out of the ground. Conclusion? More 'in the green' this spring! I shall be going along with my little spade and bucket.
       I had one quite big snowdrop last year under my cornus satomi, it had big leaves and was quite tall. Only one, though, and there is no sign of it this year - so far. I have not yet given up hope. The crocus in other parts of the garden are coming through - when I rake off the leaves, there they are, poking up. Again, much later than usual but none the less welcome for that. The 'Bulb Bed' above, has come along splendidly - it is on the south side of the garden and quite sheltered, so the bulbs are quite advanced. I planted some species tulips there last fall, and they are starting to show up now. I have to do some weeding there, but shall probably just direct seed some annual poppies for after the bulbs. That looked well last year.

              I do have one double snowdrop, bought at the Veseys sale in 2016, and put into a sunny flower bed. It is blooming as well. I expect to have to move it at some point, but not yet as it is still very small. Note: bulb fertilizer! I put it far away from the singles in order to prevent cross-pollination, but I rather doubt I will get to the point of developing new varieties any time soon. I just want the wood to be full of snowdrops - don't care what kind!
     I was quite worried about my beautiful burgundy hellebore - it is just beside the front path, and was covered again and again with snow, and worse, ice.  I took off the old leaves, and there was no sign of anything coming up, until yesterday, when I spotted a couple of hopeful-looking sprouts. This is much, much later than the previous two years - a factor of the winter, which was very cold and mostly snow-less, so the frost went deep into the ground. It is still not thawed very far down, so I am reluctant to uncover my rhododendrons just yet. On the upside, hellebore-wise, I have an actual bud, on a pink hellebore that hasn't bloomed before, in the bed on the right-hand side of the front path. It may bloom next week. No sign from all of the many others. Yet. I live in hope.
      I was trying to move some of my mammoth pile of wood chippings yesterday and it's frozen 20 cm. down. I am scraping off the top and barrowing it to the west side of the house for renewing the paths between the shrub borders. Just ran out of membrane - must acquire more so I can complete this task. I have a big circular seating area that didn't work well when I did it before - a combination of gaps in the membrane and a not-thick-enough layer of wood chips. I shouldn't have that problem this time.