At last

When we came to this house, over 20 years ago, there was a lovely Lilac in the front garden and every year it flowered beautifully. Then one very windy evening it blew down and was torn in two. We bought another one and hoped it would grow similarly. It was a disappointment.

We have now had it quite a few years and this is the first year it has flowered properly. It’s now looking good and this morning was covered in bees.

Now all you great gardeners who know more about plants than I do (not difficult!) - did it need to get to a certain maturity in order to flower properly, or is it just circumstances? Do we do anything to it to make sure it flowers next year?

We had our last trip into Appleby this morning - to the optician. Now all the roads are littered with vehicles, horses, people, making it difficult to get through. Then the roads will be closed. We are staying put . . .