Saturday 2nd April 2022 - Wrong to be Complacent

Following the recent sunny spell I was feeling quite complacent that we were out of the woods, so to speak, and wouldn’t see any snow until, possible next winter. Got that one wrong; March was determined to go out with a sting in its tail. On the final day of the month we woke in the early hours to hear hail pounding on our conservatory roof and when we got up we were greeted with a mix of hail and snow. The snow began to settle but with an accompanying strong easterly wind, I resisted the temptation to go out and grab a couple of photos. Our part feral cat, Lunar, sleeps in the conservatory but that particular night she had a friend, our neighbour’s cat, in for a sleepover. The conditions were so unhospitable there was no way I was going to send him home for his breakfast. So, it was breakfast for two and our neighbour’s cat decided to spend most of the day with us, curled up on a chair; returning home late afternoon. Where was our Sid? He was sprawled out asleep on our bed. These cats do like their creature comforts! The strong winds, throughout Thursday and most of Friday, have made it very cold outdoors and it was difficult to hold the camera still when I took a photo on Thursday afternoon, looking towards Cromer.

As for today, there was a small flurry when we took Barney out this morning but this ceased after the menacing cloud, captured in my photo, passed over. Blue skies are back but it is still very cold in the shade but toasty when I was sorting out plants in the greenhouse this morning – two sharp contrasts. While I was out in the garden, I checked on the peach and apricot trees, expecting to see the winds had stripped them of blossom, but no, the petals for the most part are still intact. Flowering so early in the spring, there are not many pollinating insects about to fertilize the blooms. However, each year some fruits set, only to fall off the trees. We live in hope that one year they will mature into succulent fruits that we can pick, sink our teeth into and let the juices run down our chins.