Joys of Spring

Ours are mainly on the front bank, which faces NE and, in part, SE, with a few strays in the grass below and on the terrace above. I wait till all the flowers – snowdrops, daff, primroses, lesser celandines, pignut, lady's smock, and ox-eye daisies have shed their seed before I tidy up the grasses late in the summer. Oh yes, there is London Pride as well which seems to be spreading. Six years ago, when we came here the whole bank was smothered in brambles growing through some azaleas. I keep the azaleas in check now (lovely when in bloom in May) and hoick out diddy brambles whenever I see them. We've had robins and willow warblers nesting in holes in the bank, not to mention various bees, bank voles and wood mice, and roe deer leave their droppings regularly. They eat some of the flowers but not too many. In autumn they eat the bolete mushrooms.

A Scottish Spring singing - I can hear it, see it and smell it! Thank you both supersoop and bagitha.

I forgot to mention the tit families...blue, coal and great. Such sweet little feathered friends.

Long-tailed tits sometimes visit my bird feeder but they must be busy elsewhere just now.

Annobel Yes! When they do put in an appearance, they tend to visit in a wee group. Another bird we enjoy in our garden, is the tree creeper. They are fascinating to watch.

HOUSE MARTINS!!!

bagitha Wow! Lucky you. Ours haven't arrived yet. Last year's nest, under the eaves, is ready and waiting. At the Big House [J just been to mow the lawn] the late owner would leave the door and windows ajar. The Martins entered and built their nests inside the house, in corners of the vaulted ceilings in the grand hall.

The ones I saw today were heading west, soop. Hope you see some soon. We have had as many as eight active nests under the eaves, but the year after the ash cloud from the Iceland volcano, we had no resident house martins . Then last year they were very late and house sparrows (of which we used to have none but they've appeared in the last couple of years) were already squatting in the HM nests. Sparrows are thugs compared with house martins. Wonder what will happen this year? They are one of my favourite birds.

I should have said the summer after the Icelandic volcano, because that was in the spring of 2010, wasn't it? We think "our" house martins were "ashed" on the way her and never made it.

The gape of the wee chicks, tickles us pink...

Across the loch from where I sit
The white tops and burnished copper sides
Of hills in sunset light are my view.
Below the bright shine are hill shadows,
Trees greening and filling out by the day
And the first few lights
Strung along the lochside road.
Clouds scud past from the north-west
In my visible sky.

You've given me a very serene vision, bagitha. Thank you.

bagitha

The lofty peaks of
Islay and Jura
Rise from a bright blue sea
Skittish waves tickle the pebbles on the beach...
I can almost hear them chuckle.
The sky is streaked with a
Kaleidoscope of clouds.
Birds flit past the window
Bearing gifts for their new nests.
Their silver song
Gladdens my heart.

Sometimes I want to live in Scotland.

A day of bonfires,
Of dandelion verges and gambolling lambs,
First sighting of bluebells,
And a Lady's Smock field.
A sheep riding on the back
Of a farmer's quad bike
Trundling down the road.
Seagulls bright in sunlight
Against a dark backdrop
Of overcast hills.
Home just in time
Before the squall hit.

soop and bags, you make me homesick, though I come from a bit further south on the coast of the Firth of Clyde and my view was mainly of the lovely Isle of Arran.

Supersoop and bagitha - Like ga, these words make me sometimes want to live in Scotland, too!!

Now Spring has decided to stay a while
In offering it's presence,
And presents
Of newness and growth
It's almost as if it's saying
See!
Look how clever the natural world is
To bring such a breath of freshness
And clarity of light
To sooth and refresh
A soul that has
Perhaps
Grown a little tired and dusty
At the tail end of a Winter's season.

Butter your poem is inspirational. Absolutely beautiful.

Indeed, butty, there is nothing so grand nor so inspiring as what Nature does without any help from mere mortals like us .

's to you both.

With newly tweaked hair-do
A little lip-gloss
And a bargain top from ebay,
I walked around the pretty harbour
Of the village of Tarbert...
And I thanked my friend
For dressing my hair -
The day for being beautiful -
Mother Nature for new green shoots
Perfumed flowers
Chirping birds -
The harbour for it's history -
My man for his company
And the surgeon
Who with skill and good humour
Gave me a brand new hip
With which to allow me to enjoy
Life's many pleasures.

Lovely, supersoop ......... and even lovelier to see you up and about!

soop

soop