Memory cannot change the past, and yet it is hard to bring to mind life before ‘Lockdown’. How lucky are we who are isolating at Cothay, surrounded by the greening of April; nothing changes save the seasons, which come and go like the ebb and flow of the tides.
April has a reputation for showers, and this year it is actually one of the drier months. Towering cumulonimbus rain clouds drop their load and then disperse. This pattern occurs when there is a contrast between warm surface air and cold air high up. Sharp frosts are quite common in April, so we have not yet started to plant up our summer flowering containers, as many of the plants are tender fusspots. Two climbers are flowing on warm walls; the first is Eccremocarpus, the Chilean glory vine – what more could you ask from this charming climber, which will flower from spring until well into the autumn. The second is Akebia quinata, originating in Japan, China and Korea, an evergreen, twining glabrous climber, which will grow up to forty feet; the flowers are chocolate-purple with a heavenly scent. Also flowering with profusion are the Taraxacum and the Bellis perennis (dandelions and daisies!)
Mathew and Saskia are working hard – Saskia is teaching yoga online. I think it must be quite exhausting, especially as she has a bad toothache and is unable to go to the dentist. Mathew has spent the day mowing – we think he is rather bossy but he disagrees and says he just he likes things done his way! Don’t we all..!!
The fleeting beauty of April, full of promise of things to come; how timeless are these outdoor magical days.
Greenham, Nr. Wellington,
Somerset, TA21 OJR
01823 672283
