Just like a Hitchcock movie

Another satisfying week in the garden, except for that day when the heavens opened up. The garden started to look like a swamp in parts and a river in others. Even today, nearly a week on, some parts of the ground are still underwater. I know it's going to be a wet spring and summer but I'm beginning to think about buying some fishing waders for working in the garden.

The veggie patches are underway (and often underwater). 15 self seeded tomato plants planted in one bed and 6 in the green house. Fingers crossed for a year round supply. We also planted pumpkins, peas, chillies, zucchinis, cucumbers and carrots with garlic nearly ready to harvest. We have worked hard on the soil and it seems to have paid off - rich, crumbly and wormy. Let's hope we get good results.

The bird antics this week have been particularly delightful. Each spring we meet a few characters in our garden. Most birds have only one thing on their mind this time of the year and watching them is better than watching television. We have a couple of families of black birds (Mr Black and Ms Brown) and they are frequent visitors to our deck. I'm pretty sure there is a nest in the shrub right next to the steps. The wattles sit high in the trees and frighten off all interlopers, both big and small. Another wattle has just started to brave the deck area in search of nesting materials. Dog fur is highly valued.

The honey eaters are swarming the bottlebrushes and flowering shrubs and fantails are dive bombing insects as they fly through the air. The wrens must already be on their nests but the ocassional blue comes out to strut his stuff.

Parrots, black cockies and the ducks add to the circus. The kookaburras seem to be the common enemy and the smaller birds gang up on them, chasing them away from their precious nests. The kookas, in true arrogant style, fly off and regroup in a tree, laugh, and pretend the little birds hadn't bothered them at all.

And if watching their antics wasn't enough, the air is filled with their distinctive songs. From early morning to dusk we can hear all their different calls, some melodious, some less so. We wake to the beautiful song of the blackbird and are entertained by the shrill cry of the wattles. Just sitting here, writing this, I have identified at least 5 different bird calls (thank you, raven - 6) and the frogs, but that's a different story.

It's been a busy spring so far and everything is shaping up to be spectacular. I can't wait to enjoy it before summer takes its toll and things start to look a little tired.