Woke to glorious and much needed sunshine today, so thought, great I can dry my washing on the line in all that fresh air!  Now the bit of the garden that get's the sun most of the day this time of year  has just been re-gravelled, and that's where the little pipe that my aerial washing line pole fits in, is located.  Well, I've been scratching around in the gravel like a demented old hen, and can't find the bloody thing.  So miffed.  I will have to hang it all over the Aga maid again, which curtails my cooking plans a bit (no one want's their smalls smelling of fried leeks do they?).

I took a few pics of the garden.  Hellebores, not sure which variety as the label has disappeared over the years.

 Jacobaea Maritima,  bought last year as a bedding plant. It's a wonderful, robust plant.

 Little leaves...not sure what,  as bluebells, crocuses and muscari grow here and I can't remember what comes up first.

Lily, waiting to be adorned with spring flowers.

Ivy, so much ivy...but I love it.

 Tree peony in bud. Must prune off all that dead wood. Do I do this at this time of year I wonder?

.... the very last blob of snow., lurking on the drive.

I love my mossy staddlestone.

Close up, it has Suess like qualities, those could almost be little truffula trees!

You can see temporary fencing in the background, put there to keep the dogs off this bit of lawn as it drains poorly and was getting muddy. You can't be lawn proud when you have dogs, and ours have never looked stunning. It was a complete waste of time though, as we have a visitor, who's doing far more damage...a mole.  Mr. says it has to go, which is ominous. I've heard they are very hard to get rid of and can't bear the thought of killing it. One of my favourite childhood books was Wind in the Willows, so I am trying to find alternative humane removal methods for Mr. Mole.

Mini mole hill - he's working his way around the walling

We went to the allotment yesterday after walking the dogs, to harvest what's left.  Not a bad haul. Sadly the Kavelo Nero had bolted,  we took the tops off and we picked what we could. Hope it keeps going a little longer.  The leeks looked pathetic after the snow, but will revive, but the early onions and garlic are looking ok, just a bit bedraggled.

Yesterday, I found a sack of home grown Estima potatoes, that  had  chitted badly.  We considered replanting them, but I got dithery about it.  You can cause yourself problems with disease using your own stock, so I decided to see what was what and cut into a few.

They were fine, so they were processed into tiny squares and discs, parboiled,  popped into bags with rapeseed oil, salt, black pepper, onion and garlic salt and various herbs, massaged and popped into the freezer. Lovely, ready for the oven spuds, organically grown by  us.

 I used some of them for Mr.'s supper, sauteed with onions, garlic, peppers, chillis, chorizo and topped with a couple of eggs, oh and lots of cheddar cheese. He loved it.

Hoping the weather's glorious where you are!