A dry, richly-scented week

During the past few days the wind has dropped and the garden has been idyllically calm so the scents of the richest-smelling flowers are hanging thickly in the air - lilac, lily of the valley, scented pansies and I can even smell the scent of the clematis montana which is often eclipsed.   I have been digging up and giving away lily of the valley as it grows like a weed in comparatively poor, dry, part-shady soil here and forms dense clumps which are progressively marching across the garden from east to west.   Still, they provide great ground-cover, wonderful cut-flowers and can be dug-up relatively easily, so I don't mind. 

Moderate amounts of rain seem to have fallen around and about but Maidenhead has been completely dry for weeks now so my grass seeds haven't started to germinate yet    The up side is a dearth of slugs and snails.   There have been frosts most weekdays but luckily they haven't caught anything here, even  my young apricot tree which doesn't have any fruit on it yet but I was worried that its planting position might make it vulnerable to frost.

As announced by Teddy the dog next door, a hedgehog visited the garden overnight, leaving tell-tale droppings and the blackbirds nesting in the honeysuckle and ivy on the fence between me and my neighbours are on their second brood.   Hopefully, some of them will survive this time.   With the dry weather many birds are enjoying both ceramic bird baths - a pair of collar doves doing a book-end trick on the one in the herb garden.

No more lily-beetle sightings for a few weeks - maybe they don't like the dry weather - and not many greenfly either - yet!     

Under glass, most of my dahlias are now growing well in the greenhouse and seeds of cobaea scandens, sweet pea "Matucana" and eccromocarpus scaber "Tresco mixed" are all germinating in the house - probably far too late but better than not at all.   I also acquired two very small tea plants - camellia sinensis - from a Twinings tea job at the studio, which I shall have to give plenty of TLC.   They like warmth, moisture but not direct sun - hmmm.

Rain is forecast today.   The sun was shining at 6.30 this morning but it is clouding up as I write.   Unpopular, I know, but I do so hope it does rain!