Dry.

It has been dry and relatively warm today with a hint of sun above the mist.

There isn't very much for me to do at the zoo at the moment so for a change I spent time working in the garden here. I'm still not sure about digging up the grass with a fork, too much soil staying on the roots and bad for my back so I worked on my knees instead. Slower but safer.

I had my supervisor the robin, with me as I worked. As he watched from the shelter of the hedge he was constantly singing. So quietly that at first I didn't notice him and then it reminded me of a skylark's song floating down from above as I walked on the moors. He kept up his gentle burble until a second robin arrived when whatever he was saying was very rude as he saw the intruder off. Whenever I found a worm I threw it back onto the cleared ground. Most made it back into the soil but the robin and later the blackbirds  had a good meal too.

Snowdrops have begun to appear under the severely cut back hypericum. Hopefully this little clump will increase in time. I've been trying to think which low growing or trailing summer flowering plants would be good in the front of the bed. It's the colour that's the issue. The vibrant gold of the hypericum flowers  is tricky. Dandelions or buttercups would be perfect for colour but spread too easily though I'm not adverse to mixing in wildflowers with the more traditional garden flowers. Can't think of anything that's orange either so I've decided to go with purple - trailing campanula which I can move from elsewhere in the garden and maybe aubretia which is easy to buy. The new raised below is already destined to have plants with silver foliage and blue or purple flowers so the colours would be the same going down the steps.

I also baked Peter a bara brith. He really like my Christmas version with nuts in and asked for the same again. Last week Lidl didn't have their bags of mixed nuts so I used pecans instead. I tried a small slice which went really well with some stilton. 

Off soon to choir.