It's early and I am looking out of the window at another miserable, dull, rainy day. The weather of this month and last month is seriously affecting my joie de vivre. The BBC announced that last month, April 2012, was the rainiest for 100 years and the bets are on that this May is going to be the coldest May for the last 100 years. Oh great! And there was I, thinking: 'it wasn't like this last year was it, in the UK, in West Yorkshire, in my neighbourhood, in my flipping garden?' Ok, getting a bit over the top here but take for example my garden last year at this time. I had my hanging baskets out. There were lots of leaves on the roses. The strawberry plants had tiny fruits growing amid the flowers. The honeysuckle was full of buds.
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| Strawberries 12 May 2011, overwintered outdoors |
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Strawberries 09 May 2012 - overwintered and kept in polytunnel
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In comparison, there is hardly a flower bud to be seen on the raspberries and loganberries this year, especially when you compare with the plants at this time last year.
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| Loganberries in full bloom 13 May 2011 |
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Raspberry flower buds 05 May 2012
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Raspberry fruit forming 02 May 2011
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There are no buds showing yet on the honeysuckle but this time last year, the climber was not only fully in bud but showing open flowers.
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| Honeysuckle May 2011 |
I've not even planted up my hanging baskets yet this year, and look at this from last year. Well on the way to the basket overflowing with flowers.
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| Hanging basket of begonia, lobelia, and bacopa May 2011 |
I shall remain hopeful that the weather will make up for it and we will have a fabulous June, July, August, September... Well, I can hope.
On the bright side, we might not have a hosepipe ban where I live this year.
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