HERE at Driftwood the three of us, mum, my partner and I, plus Chester our terrier have been in lockdown now for several weeks and it continues to be a bit frustrating for me not being able to do the full range of things I’d like to in the garden.

Last week I struggled with my peg leg to trim the damaged leaves from the 45 potted agaves stored in a narrow alley to the side of the house. The two of us then struggled to transfer them from their winter home to their positions in the beach garden for the summer.

You could almost see them sigh with relief at being able to take in some sun. So, at the moment, despite absolutely no attention whatsoever since last year, the front garden is looking pretty spectacular, shame it is only us that will see it this year.

A couple of weeks ago our tortoise, Hector, woke up from his long winter sleep. Once given his spring wash and brush-up, I decided it was still a little too cold to be outside permanently, so he’s safely holed up in the back porch until it warms up, with occasional forays into his pen on sunny days.

This week is perfect for tidying up hydrangeas. This prevents them becoming too woody and channels their energy into producing strong growth and large blooms. Hydrangeas are an exception to the rule that says shrubs that produce their flowers on the previous season’s growth should be pruned after flowering. The structure of hydrangea stems means it’s best to leave cutting back until now, the stems are cork-like, rather than woody, and hold enough moisture inside them during winter for this to freeze in frosty weather.

Pruned in autumn, after flowering, the buds can freeze, killing the stems and their buds. Leaving the old flowers over winter, until the worst frosts are over, helps protect the stems and their new buds. Remove old flower heads just above a pair of buds. Hydrangea buds can be easily knocked off, so cut carefully.

With the continuing isolation I decided to order some pepper and tomato plants to grow from seed, something anyone can do as you don’t need a garden or a greenhouse to grow them, a kitchen windowsill will do. There are many being advertised online now. I bought two kits that each contain six pre-sown plugs of tomato “Maskotka” and six pre-sown plugs of sweet pepper “King of the North”. Add to this the two mini-propagators supplied and it won’t be long before I have my own home-grown tomatoes and peppers.

Read more of Geoff’s garden at www.driftwoodbysea.co.uk