Hostas are emerging from the ground along with ground covers, day lilies, phlox, sedum, grasses, poppies and more. Once the warmer weather and sun kick in, it’s always fun to see how quickly plants start to grow.

I stopped by our local nursery yesterday. There’s not a huge amount of inventory available, but that will change now that spring is here. I picked up some bags of top soil and a flat of gorgeous pansies, since I knew I could plant them in my urns. They’re hardy – just in case we get a freakish cold weather day.

It’s immensely cheering to see some colorful flowers on and near the porch. Pansies make me happy.

I’ve been watching a British gardening show on Netflix called Big Dreams, Small Spaces. The host is Monty Don, who is a sort of gardening hero in Britain. I knew about him via Instagram (I follow him) so when I came upon this show, I was thrilled. He works with people who want to turn front or backyards into a beautiful garden and it’s a lot of fun. Plus, I learn a lot.

Heaven knows, we can’t expect any gardening shows from HGTV. Those days are apparently gone as they’ve locked into an endless stream of House Hunters and “Flip” shows, all of which bore me to tears. I realize they are a cash cow for the network but for me they’re a big, fat yawn. I really only watch Home Town – and that’s over for the season. Remember the days of gardening programming? And a host of other wonderfully unique shows?

Thank goodness the Brits are true garden lovers. I imagine there will always be garden programs across the pond. And thank goodness for Netflix!

Today it’s a ‘rain all day’ kind of day so I’m going to run some necessary errands.

Happy Wednesday.