First gardening of the year

Yep, those are my wellies, plain green and muddy - I don't go in for these brightly coloured flowery ones! I made the most of the glorious weather last Tuesday and started digging up the garden. This little area is where the tortoise enclosure is going. Tortoises aren't keen on grass as it is boring - they like mud to dig in and things to walk around like rocks and plants. I have some rocks earmarked for this area but they are too heavy for me to carry, but I have planted some dandelions for the tortoises to eat. Not quite sure how long these plants will last once the tortoises move in. I will also be planting other stuff that they won't be interested in eating. They will need a basking rock aswell so that they can sunbathe. I wonder how much sunshine we will actually get this year. You couldn't really have said we had a summer last year.

 It did seem rather strange, lovingly planting weeds rather than pulling them out. Look how neatly I have lined them up! This area will need some wooden sides which will be set into the ground (to stop the tortoises tunneling out), a little glass topped house where they will sleep at night and some mesh over the entire area to stop crows and magpies from stealing my little ones. They are still quite tiny so a crow could easily lift one off the ground.

 I found this bird skull whilst digging. Never seen one before - I wonder if it was a bird that just died of old age or whether it was left by a cat.

I also had some lunch out in the sunshine and did a bit of crochet. It was a gorgeous day all round, although I did ache for a couple of days after because of all the digging. I really must do more exercise.

My eldest's birthday went well. She had a lovely time. It is her sleepover party this weekend so lots to do in preparation over the next few days. She is so excited I think she may pop! x