It seems only fair that having complained about the early Spring weather killing of the buds on our Wisteria back in the middle of April (My Globally Warmed Wisteria) that I should apologise to the weather and come clean with the fact that this remarkable plant did, in fact, survive to give us a quite magnificent display.

Jumping from one extreme to another – one minute there I was freezing my extremities off and the next we are living through days where the temperature was maxing out at 28 degrees centigrade. And that is pretty unusual for early May.

The grass grew, the sky was wall to wall blue, the patio warmed my naked feet and the Wisteria blossomed.

And the forecast is for rain on Thursday. But it was nice while it lasted.

So here I am, April 19th 2008 and almost a full month into Spring, looking out of my conservatory windows at a grey sky and a Wisteria that has, so far, had most if it’s shoots destroyed by three rounds of late overnight frosts. Same thing happened last year. And the year before that.

Temperature outside is a miserable 5 degrees centigrade and this is at noon. My fingers are bloody cold. In fact most of me is bloody cold.

I was promised global warming. I was told, many years ago now, that because my local area is only a foot or two above sea level that by now I would have an ocean view. i was promised global warming. Warming, I thought, might be the key word there.

I want some of it and I want it now.