What's Coming Up This Week: Crocuses, Muscari, Narcissi

It's really exciting being in a new garden as spring approaches. As I've mentioned, the front garden is just about as you would want it--the drive is lined with lavender, there are several beautiful mature rosebushes (They were still blooming in September when we first saw the house), a big and lovely rosemary bush on the corner, a hydrangea, a few buddleia (the little old lady who lived here clearly loved these, as they are everywhere), what appear to be columbine and either hollyhocks or malva, and now, as spring is nearing, there are daffodils about ready to bloom, and something else which I mistook for daffodils and now realise are something else, but I don't yet know what.

The back garden has a portion near the house--about 1/3 of the total area--which is in a similar state of completeness. It has the oldest cyclamen I have ever seen--at least, the neighbors said they think it's a cyclamen. It's hard to tell in its current state of brownness. There are a couple of potted vines on the patio, one of which is a honeysuckle, and the other could be anything. I added a pink jasmine in the corner, where you can see the remains of English ivy, which must have been there at some point, but has since been removed.

There are a few of what I'd guess are some kind of mallow or hibiscus--again, hard to tell as they are not currently flowering, but the leaves look like they may be one or the other. Also, at least one rosebush, and some kind of flowering shrub or small tree. And then, again, a buddleia or two.

Then, there is a huge back section, the other 2/3 of the garden, in which the neighbors on both sides said nothing was growing, as the little old lady who lived here had it all planted in vegetables.

To the rear is a little greenhouse, with two apple trees out front, and the side is covered with buddleia.

I have literally over 100 pots with plants in them, but I don't want to plant them until I am sure that there is nothing growing out back. I know what the neighbors have said, but I would also say "nothing is growing there," when there may be a few daffodils or, as is the case, a patch of violets under the apple trees. So, I'm waiting to see what comes up, and then I'll mark anything that's there, and be sure to either move it or plant around it.

So it's exciting, now, as the weather starts to warm up, and I see little things coming up. As it turns out, there are little yellow crocuses on each side of the door to the greenhouse. They are also scattered around the "finished" area. Two little purple crocuses are also coming up this week, and some narcissi that I have in pots have just bloomed. They are too cute for words.

Back where "nothing" is, there are two or three lavender muscari poking their heads up through the grass on the borders. There are also some kind of bulb flowers growing next to the path, which may be daffodils, but I have to wait until they are closer to bloom to find out for sure.

Every time I see something like the daffodils-that-aren't-daffodils in the front garden come up, I get all excited and wonder what they are going to be.

I'll clearly have to post some pictures here.

The BAD news is that on Wednesday, I was sitting in the living room and happened to look up to see a RAT wandering by nonchalantly on the back patio. Clearly, something must be done. I don't want to poison it, as I don't want to risk getting the birds or frogs. We are considering a ferret.