It always amazes me how cutting the grass can instantly make our garden look smarter. This weekend was no different, and it was nice to have some decent weather. We've had lunches in the garden and a barbecue too and as we're hoping to spend much more time in the garden over the next few months, this weekend we set about Operation Garden.

So, instead of sitting and admiring the blue skies and yellow laburnum we got to work.

My greenhouse - at the end of our garden - is getting fuller by the day. This weekend I've planted some spinach, beetroot, runner beans and sweet peas over at the allotment and yet it's still full of tomato, cucumber, lettuce, leeks, sweetcorn, celeriac and chard seedlings.

I'm at the point where my daily ritual includes walking the length of the garden, often in dewy grass, opening the greenhouse and emptying it of seedlings and then doing the reverse in the evenings. And invariably my presence in that part of the garden is quickly followed by pigeons scrambling out of the cherry tree, guiltily.

so the addition to my ritual is checking the cherry tree for cherries. So far there's still cherries, it's a battle you see. Me against the pigeons. Sometimes I win, but more often they do. Although I'm willing to reach a compromise of just having the cherries I can reach.

But anyway, there's cherries in the making.

Feeling the need to do something, I headed back down the garden armed with a saw and loppers. The fatsia was encroaching over the grass too much, and was almost reaching the middle of our garden. So a trim was needed. It's quite therapeutic pruning, and this is the pile of trimmings.

And thankfully there still is some fatsia left too. I'd plans to cut many of our plants this weekend, but these were scuppered by a quickly full green bin and not much room in our compost bin. Plans were soon remade for next weekend. And to order another green bin from the council.

With the fatsia trimmings in the green bin, MOH unpacked the new lawn mower and started to set it up.

Leaving him to it I tackled the overgrown bed alongside the patio. The forget-me-nots had gone on a rampage and were in danger of overtaking just about everything, including the alliums that are in bud and the black grass that was supposed to keep them down.

Along with the bulb foliage they were creating the perfect snail hotel. I couldn't believe how many were on this pot when I pulled it out. I don't mind snails, obviously I'm not keen on them munching my plants but they don't make me squeamish, not like slugs. [shiver]

Having tackled the snails and the forget-me-nots, next up was the Chilean potato plant. Many years ago I brought a cutting home from my dad's garden. I planted it, forgot about it and never really thought too much about it. In the last two years though it's really grown and each May we have an abundance of these pretty flowers.

The only trouble is that most of the pruning needs to be done about seven foot up. So out came the ladder, up I went wobbling and down came the canopy that had started to develop, making space for my sweet peas.

By now the lawn mower was assembled. Oil was going in and next up was the petrol. Can you see the contentment on his face? This face is the product of intensive research online about lawn mowers and which suited him and our garden best.

Back on the patio I was pleased to see my Gertrude Jekyll rose in bud. It was my fourth wedding anniversary present from MOH and the first few years it did well, then not so much. Last year I moved it alongside the patio, but clearly at the wrong time of year as there were no flowers at all last year.

Which makes this photo very special.

4TH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY PRESENT: GERTRUDE JEKYLL ROSE

I'm hoping that our patio will be filled of these pretty pink roses where we'll be able to enjoy them. And I expect to have a well kept lawn too. That's only right, yes?

* Collaborative post