the first daffodil

Cliona planted two large and two medium boxes with bulbs about three months ago.

Positioned against the wall, they've received a lot of rain off the roof.

We were thrilled when the first blue-grey stalk budded and opened to reveal a perfect yellow daff ...

Meanwhile, I completed a little restoration job on a tired old cigar box my friend Michel kindly gave me a couple of months ago.

To replace the missing side panel of the box, I found a piece of dark wood and cut it to measure.

I polished the box with a mixture of linseed oil and turpentine. It appreciated the nourishing oil, as it was very dry and lacklustre.

It looks lovely now and compliments another old box flanking the Victorian toilet mirror (with rope-twist columns) adorning Aunty Viv's early 19th century Tasmanian-made cedar chest-of-drawers.

This better day

Cold, grey days of mist and drizzle seemed endless  ... but today was a wonderful relief, bright and warm and sunny.

It's squelchy underfoot, but there are rewards in walking around the yard.

The last winter rose, a stoic survivor, is now succumbing to its fate.

There are other flowers to admire ... a small Althea shrub beside the ancient fountain and a clump of hellebores beneath the Lime tree.

Previous owners Yves and Nicole left some treasures in the garden. This earthenware pot has a striking sun-yellow glaze and green collar. It lies in a bed made bare by the winter.

The other day we spotted a pair of partridges stealthily moving around the fringes of the garden, where stones make a border near the road.

We watched them with great excitement and furtively took photographs through the window.

We knew if we opened the door they'd be gone.