After the coldest winter in thirty years, the spring flowers in our local market are a welcome sight. It's a sign of the times that exotic incomers such as the Osteospermum from South Africa have found a place amongst the classic English flowers such as Tulips and Sweet Williams.
At this time of year, I buy great big bunches for myself and for my friends - these early blooms are with us for such a short time, and here in Deal they are so affordable ...
Vibrant daisies, in anemone colours - these are not cut flowers, but rather potted plants ready to go into the garden.
These tulips are grown by a local lady, Alison, at her farm just outside Deal, called Rorke's Drift. I am already looking forward to her extraordinary dahlias, which should be with us in June or July.
These daisies, too, are ready to be planted out in the garden. I'm particularly fond of these - when I got married back in London, years ago, I had dozens of pots of these lining the path to our front door, welcoming guests to our rather home-made reception.
I find Sweet Williams quite irresistible. It's that profusion of flowers on one stem, the spiky bracts, and above all the delicious scent of cloves and cinammon. They're very old-fashioned, and hard to find, but they abound here in our market, thanks to Alison.
Ever since I've had a garden, I have made a point of planting lavender. I love it in all its forms, and for so many reasons. One of my best memories is of an afternoon spent with a couple of friends, cutting up worn-out men's shirts to make lavender bags, using flowers from their garden.
I love to see the Osteospermum en masse. They remind me of the amazing Namaqualand daisies in the Western Cape (South Africa), bursting out of the seemingly dead soil in their millions after the Spring rain, and carpeting the land with blazing colour for a brief, sublime moment.
