Tis the season

Mid February.  Crocus time.   Lots in flower in my cold frame now but precious little sunshine here to show them off well.   Today was better, at least for a while.   This is a special form of Crocus tommasinianus, the easiest species crocus to grow in the garden.   Pictures of the common, pale purple form are the commonest crocus on Blip at the moment.   I was given this one, twenty five years ago with the cultivar name 'Eric Smith' named after a well known alpine plantsman of the later part of the last century.   White forms of Crocus tommasinianus are not very often seen, this with it's purple flecks, even less so.   Sadly, unlike the common form, it is slow to increase but it's one of only a few that have survived in my care for this long, so I'm very happy to still have it!

A bitty sort of a day.   I don't feel like I've achieved much but I've not sat still much either!    One useful job done outside was watering all the potted bulbs - the first watering this year for most.   They'll need plenty now that most are in full growth, many coming from areas which have much spring rain before a dryer summer.   Once the flowers are over, I'll let mother nature do the work but for now it's careful hand watering.