For the Iris poem and two Tulips poems, all with photos, look back to last spring. Below we celebrate some of the unofficial tenants of our gardens.

COFFEE-BREAK ON THE ALLOTMENT

When you are tired of worthy cabbages,
And bored with crinkly feel and dark green flavour;
When you resent the times you trudge the ridges,
All burdened down with tedious, useful labour;

Deflate a while and take a smaller view;
Step down among the little things of life;
Under the useful crops, let’s find a few
Self-planted weeds, not destined for the knife.

Heartsease! Tiny fatface! Gorgeous imp!
Purple and white and yellow, all in each flower!
And henbit, dragon, pink among the limp
Bibs of green; and pimpernel’s scarlet power.

Germander speedwell drapes the soil with blue;
Straggly chickweed lifts its stars of white.
Groundsel stands straight, tufty bittercress too
And baby nettles sprout with shaggy spite.

A smaller view lets fun run the estate,
So let ten minutes’ wildness fire your sorrow;
Let forceful smell and bulging roundness wait:
The cabbages will still be there tomorrow!