The view of the valley from our house has two distinct parts. To the west there are olive trees and a huge pine. It remains green all year round. But to the east there are chestnuts and a variety of different oaks. Some of the oaks already have bright green leaves, others are just appearing and some are still completely bare. In the late afternoon sun they all look splendid although more autumnal than vernal.

It has, it must be said, been a rather wet few months. Channel 5 in the UK has been showing Michael Portillo’s Portugal. He starts the series with an annoying intro along the lines that Portugal “has sun all year round”. Hmmm. Anyway, if you’re interested he has visited Ponte de Lima (“I don’t think many people get to the north of Portugal, but Ponte de Lima is very beautiful.”) and tried to eat tripe.

The good news is that, along with some lovely rainbows, the grass seeds have all sprouted and we have, sort of, a lawn.

Although we miss the orchids from our previous home the countryside is beginning to flower and these white Angel’s Tears daffodils, native to this area, more than make up for them. The banks are full of their delicate white bobbing heads, as well as wild primroses. Along with the wood violets and field marigolds the daily dog walk is more cheering. The song thrush, black cap, robin and wren also help to lift the spirits on a grey morning.

The succulent bed has had mixed results but this one (graptosedum?) has done exceedingly well, easily four times the size we planted it in the summer, and now has some lovely yellow flowers.

We have been working, or rather pottering, in the garden adding more plants, some wooden steps, a few more shrubs and bushes but nothing really to show. Richard managed to burn most of the branches from the tree felling episode, the rest went into the shredder to make a mulch around the beds. The warmer weather, we tell ourselves, is just around the corner and everything will start to grow and bloom. I’ve sown loads of seeds too and have already potted on tomato plants, purple beans and buttercup squash. The window sills are awash with little seed trays full of wild flowers. The sunflowers, ‘4 o’clock’ (mirabilis jalapa) flowers and some alyssum are already up and running.

The big news at the moment is that the earth is moving, and in fact it feels like an earthquake. We have, yet again, blokes and their machines digging up around the house. This time they are, at long last, starting work on the driveway around the house. It’s going to take two weeks, but at least the front and east side won’t look like a building site for much longer. Let’s hope the forecast rain doesn’t mean downing tools.