Spring has sprung, birds chant sweetly, piles of sticks, fur and wool I placed for nesting birds are being pulled out for use and the garden is coming to life with bulbs flowering again. I was’t sure how many would have survived the drive and pathworks but the warm light of springtime always brings pleasant surprises. Snowdrops carpet under the trees, good for our honeybees. Crocuses likewise give early pollen for brood-rearing. The pussy willow buds will continue to nourish the bees.

Areas where drains were laid are camouflaged by new planting

In the polytunnel, down at the pond, frogs have been singing and the end result is masses of spawn, now growing to become tadpoles. I am wondering if the toads and newts will have room to breed there too: its only 4 x 8 feet and 6 mounds of frogspawn dominate over the pondweed. its hard to believe that its still quite a new feature in the garden, it is so well loved by wild things.

Alan has added an accessible path from the cattery to the roundhouse shelter. Here he is digging out excess nettles which do try to take over, though the butterflies love them as feed plants for their caterpillars.

Alan is hard at work moving mud about the garden and making paths. This year the garden gets some attention, since the cattery took all the time last year. There are new flower and vegetable beds, some built over piles of wood to provide slow feed.

Hügel beds are raised beds built from wood and materials which will slowly rot to feed the crops. They can make architectural statements and create shelter for all.

It is also a time to do repairs while we have fewer cats in. We delayed because of having nervous cats here, but wood repairs and painting have to be done on a regular rotation so its out with the hammer, nails and paintbrushes once more.

renewal and repainting of timber is a constant job, more easily done in quiet months