The Fatsia is making new growth despite looking a little shabby after the hard Winter. I bought this plant about 8 years ago in Woolworth’s in Enniskilllen. Of course Woolworth’s is long gone now but the Fatsia continues. Fatsia is usually sold as a house plant, but it is in fact very hardy. This one which cost about £2 is about 5 ft tall now and resides in a disused soil filled water tank. It is situated in a shady north facing spot and seems to love it.
The grass has really started to grow now which the animals are delighted with. They get tired of the hay and dried food and refuse to eat it once Spring arrives. The grass in this area of Birch and Scots Pine is left to grow throughout the year. Andy mows a strip around the edge to keep it looking tidy. At the moment it is full of Daisies which we think look lovely. I never understood the people with the manicured lawns putting poisons on the earth to kill off the beautiful natural flowers, but I suppose it’s a totally different mindset. 
For me one of the many joys of the good weather is being able to hang out the washing to line dry. A simple pleasure, but for me clothes dried outdoors in Summer smell lovely and fresh and are less creased than washing dried indoors. We do not have a tumble drier, actually we’ve never owned one. In Winter the washing is dried on a clothes airer which hangs from the high ceiling on the upstairs landing. As the hot air from the wood-burning stove rises the washing dries quickly at no cost.
arignagardener 