My garden, like so many others I guess, does not know whether it is coming or going. Having removed all the fleeces and started to prepare Driftwood for the summer following the recent spells of warm weather, this week I have found myself putting fleeces back on some plants to protect from the frost again.

It has been extremely cold too, moving from short-sleeved shirts one day to several layers the next.

I mentioned our tortoise, Hector, had still not woken up a couple of weeks ago, well the poor thing woke up in the recent heatwave only to go find himself in the cold again this week and now protected under cover. Let’s hope the warm weather returns soon. His pen and little house are all ready for him.

With the advent of being able to leave home and travel a little further, why not consider a visit to the bluebell wood at Arlington? It is opening on Monday through to Wednesday, May 19. Unlike previous years, booking will be essential, so you will need to buy your ticket online at www.bluebellwalk.co.uk prior to visiting. They are offering a very reduced bluebell walk with a lower entrance fee and visitor numbers limited every hour, to ensure they have a robust track and trace record. There will be no food on offer and the farm walks will not be open. The only walk will be through Beatons Wood, which will be one way round with a separate entrance and exit. Arlington Church will hold its successful plant stall in the barn. Despite the cold, spring flowers are everywhere in the garden. This week, many of my tulips have started to flower as well, creating some wonderful displays alongside the daffodils and hyacinths. I bought several new bulbs last autumn including Orange Blend, Golden Artist and Paul Scherer. The latter two are yet to flower. Give it a couple more weeks and the display should look pretty spectacular. The youTube page of my website has a short video, filmed last week, of all the spring bulbs flowering.

I had a lovely surprise over Easter. A researcher from a national TV gardening programme contacted me and discussed at length, the possibility of filming a short segment at Driftwood on container gardening, later this month. Needless to say, I was very happy to be put forward. Fingers crossed we make the final selection. It would certainly be an interesting day, with me having so many varied containers. It will be a little early for summer annuals but I still have over 100 containers out there now.

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