Is it the same for you?

Missing the molluscs ?
I'm sure I can find a few to send over to you :o)

Yes, you're right about the signs of springtime. Amazing to see beautiful bulbs in flower, from where they were hidden under snow not that many days ago.

I don't have 300 finches, but birds do seem to be pairing off ~ Collared Doves, Wood Pigeons, Robins and Blackbirds all in twosomes.

Snails are on their way in the mail to you .... by snail mail :o)

yes spring is on its way. as for the slimy ones they are hiding under a brick/stone or log just wating for your sweetest most suculent favourite plant to put tender shoots up then..... .
i moved a brick the other day and there were 50+ snails all piled ontop of each other and they were still alive despite the -10 conditions we had too.

Oh ! I have moluscs. They ate the new shoots on my little clematis.
And I've seen things I'd forgotten were there. I want to rearrange things this year - plant them in their permanent situations after moving - but I cant remember what's where. I looked back on my GoY photos and was able to work out what some were.

Got loads of the flipping things they are the bane of my life,. admittedly my fault for providing them with hidey holes.Otherwise pleased to say things are looking good and its great to see the bulbs and flowers opening also we,ve had a good week weatherwise so been able to tidy up............

Yes, although the weather is dull and cloudy, it's milder, so the flowers are speeding up now - although they are several weeks behind last year! I've been outside every moment possible.

SNAILS.... I hate them - they cause chaos!

we have sleet/snow forcast for mid next week :-{

Ifind lots of my plants are coming in to bud or just showing their noses out the ground, its brill is'nt it, as for the birds, i've just watched Mr Blackbird chasing Mrs Blackbird all over my garden, she could'nt eat her breakfast in peace.

Wow...300 finches...fabulous !

Just returned from Thailand and while I did see exotic birds and things in gardens and would often gape in awe at the size of the big-leaved palms and at the pineapples coming out of the ground in vast numbers. I didn't see a single 'typical' garden belonging to the average householder that could compare to the sheer range and variety of plants that are commonly found in UK gardens.

Is it the same for you? On a similar note I reckon the same goes for our bird life. The only place where I saw a wide variety of bird life comparable to the numbers of different bird species often found at any one place here in the UK, was in someone's garden who kept them in cages.

Sure, there were wild exotic species of plant and bird alike. But I found myself counting them in ones and twos. So I reckon we should give ourselves a 'pat-on-the-back' and consider ourselves very lucky that our gardens are so diverse and that we have such organisations as the RSPB and such......

I'm interested in knowing what kind of finches they are, Mw. Green? Gold? Bull? or Chaf? LOL.

Seriously, that really is a lot all in the same garden! We get quite a wide diversity of species, but only in pairs or maybe 4 or 5 goldfinches and up to 7 long-tailed tits. They must like your bamboos.

I love going to Italy (especially) but don't like the sight of caged birds hanging outside the houses.

Hi Spritz. A few gold, but mainly green with the odd 'chaff' thrown in.

Ah. Beautiful Italy! I lived there for a while around Ancona on the Adriatic and there, wild birds and frequent bird song in particular was something of a rarity when compared with the UK.

One of my employers was a keen shotgun user and he, along with many of his compatriots, had to travel to Ireland and the UK to find sufficient 'sport' as it was so hard to find in Italy (or Spain for that matter).

A wonderful family man. Funny though, I never had quite the same respect for him after I discovered that.

And by heck! Their winters are a damn sight colder than ours here in the UK..........