Dear Readers, you might remember that last week I went to the Garden Centre and bought some crocuses in pots, meaning to pop them into my window boxes. Well, what with one thing and another I forgot to pot them up, and when I remembered, I went out into the garden to see this mess on my garden table. I am not sure who is to blame, but I have a very strong suspicion that the culprit is small, furry and has an inordinate fondness for bulbs, bird seed and the peanuts that are meant to be for the little birds.

Ah well. I’m hoping against hope that the squirrels have taken the bulbs off to bury them somewhere else. It’s my fault for not being more prompt on the potting up front, but then they’ve been known to dig the bulbs out of my window boxes too. I shall pot up whatever bulbs remain, and hope for the best.

In other news, my teasel is having babies. Lots of babies.

And I fear that most of them have planted themselves in my wooden stairs.

It just goes to show that you can’t turn your back on the garden for a second, even in January. The starlings are looking particularly splendid, though – it’s at this time of year that you can really see the ‘stars’ in their plumage.

The magpies pop in every morning and afternoon to see what’s going on…

And I don’t know about you, but I’ve had a sudden influx of young blackbirds in the garden. They’re especially visible at dusk and dawn, but none of them are singing yet – it’s a good time for a low profile, I think. And there are lots of these little guys too. Can anyone identify this little chap from the seriously substandard photo below? A virtual round of applause for the first person to post the correct answer in the comments 🙂