Has Spring Sprung in Normandy?

I am a touch nervous to say this, but this week really feels like Spring has sprung at Eco-Gites of Lenault.  We have had wall to wall sunshine and on the days I have been late opening the polytunnel door it has to 30ºC in there.  I have seen brimstone butterflies and bumble bees.  The birds are all busy collecting nest material and the roadside verges are full of primroses, celendines and anemones.  When I met with friends for coffee earlier in the week it was warm enough to sit outside the bar without a coat.  BUT ... there are still overnight frosts and when the wind blows it is coming in from the north and so still very cold.  All in all then, from a gardening point of view, most of my work is still in the polytunnel where it is all hands on deck.

I have:

• Planted early potatoes
• Sown carrots, beetroot, turnips, chard, salad leaves, rocket and spring onions
• Potted on lettuce and cabbage seedlings
• Planted out bought early lettuces
• Transplanted mangetout seedlings
• Weeded and watered most days
• Hand pollinated broad bean flowers

I have also sorted my seeds and realised I need a bigger seed storage box, especially when I counted that I have 14 varieties of tomatoes I want to grow and none of these nor my bean/pea seeds are in this box! For details on the varieties I am growing please do click here.

And if you really want to know what has made me most happy this week then it is this rather tiny little fleck of green.  The reason is that the leaves in question are parsnip seeds which are starting to germinate.  Last year I pretty much failed to get them to germinate outside so this year I am using the loo roll method inside and it looks like it is working!  Mmm - roast parsnips!

Has Spring arrived with you this week and are you seed sowing in earnest yet?  I'd love to hear.