And in other news . . .

The gardens are beginning to look a lot less bare. There are even flowers, finally. These are Ice Stick tulips:

They are new for me this year. Very small and very cute! The first of the green daffodils are blooming, but they don't look terribly green:

From certain angles in certain light, the outer petals look vaguely lime color. Also disappointing are the Rip Van Winkle daffodils. Last year there looked like this. This year they look green and sickly:
I'm going to have to do something about the Lamb's Ear. It's taking over this corner of the bed:

Gertrude Jekyll used it as an edging plant. Dare I imitate a master?

This is Iris bucharica from Afghanistan just starting to come up:

I'm glad it survived the winter and the squirrels! Another new iris for me is Iris dardanus, an heirloom variety that is also coming up:
I'm hoping that both will bloom this year.

I've heard that Darwin tulips are quite hardy, surviving and multiplying for many years. This clump is particularly hardy. It is growing under a lilac bush and right next to a birdfeeder.
That's birdseed and corn for the squirrels to the right. You can see that the squirrels have been munching the foliage but it doesn't seem to be bothering the tulips very much!