The ground is certainly thawing fast and walking round the woods today, I could see buds beginning to open once more, squirrels out chasing each other and that almost balmy warmth in the air.
My worry is, we are in a short window of warmth which will trigger all sorts of movement in nature; something which is highly confused already. These changes in our usual climate is certainly faster than the natural world is able to adapt to.
Take for example the bumble bee.
It over-winters in crevices where it hibernates until the ambient temperatures wake it up.
Usually by this time, the first Spring flowers are starting to come out ready to be pollinated. Plant supports bee and bee supports plant. A well developed strategy which allows the plant to create seed and the bee to feed, reproduce and continue pollinating other plants as they come out.
Well that's the theory.
I hunted for anything which was in flower; some magnolias had attempted to open but were caught by the frosts but that was it.....oh apart from the sweet box which fills the air with perfume around about now.
I came home thinking I might need to put out some bee flowers (brightly painted MDF flowers with sugar water in the middle) out...and then
I remembered the humble viola. Always flowering, always pushing through and most importantly, always there.
A lone bumble bee went from flower head to flower head possibly getting its first food since late autumn.
Next year I'll plant many more violas in my garden and anything else I can think of which will provide food for our humble bumble because without them this planet would lose many plant species as well as that lazy buzzing when the sun is warm and we drink coffee outside once more.