Bring me sunshine

Spring Bulbs
Originally uploaded by Sunshine follows me.

MDH is a gardener at heart. He really is. Plants love him. He only needs to look at them just so, and they grow like mad.

We got all excited when we rented out this apartment because it has a sweet little juliet balcony - which is wide enough to hold two small balconnieres of plants.

This week, MDH went to the local Homebase and brought back a bag of dirt, some spring bulbs and a tray of pansies. He chose pansies, because he knows that I've always liked pansies - I love the way their little monkey faces always turn towards the sunlight.

Dirty hands
Originally uploaded by Sunshine follows me.

He also chose bulbs that would pop up and flower in the early-to-late spring. The pansies themselves are hardy and cold loving, so they will bloom all winter long.

This way, he reasoned, there will be flowers on the balcony everyday until the summer.

I helped him plant the troughs. That is, he got to mess about with the compost and bury the bulbs and pansies. I had the fun of ripping up old copies of the British Medical Association newsletters to line the floor, and cleaning up the mess afterwards.

Winters Pansies
Originally uploaded by Sunshine follows me.

So, I have two balconnieres of plants now. One with purple and white pansies, the other one topped with blue and purple violas. So far, so good.

I hope to see flowers next spring. Multicoloured crocuses peeking out under the elegant blue irises in March. Tall allums like giant strawberry chupa-chups in April. If this works, it will be absolutely gorgeous.

If it doesn't, we will end up with two mud troughs. Still gorgeous, but possibly not as decorative as a mass of crocuses and irises.

I'll let you know next spring.