With the change of season the warmer days are ushering greener grass, fewer frosts, bleating lambs, and blossoms aplenty. In New Zealand things are turning pretty all over the show. The farm is no exception.

Gone are frigid mornings with heavy frost like this:

And with the passing of winter, sleeping beauties are awakening:

Emerging from dormant twigs which might have been mistakenly thought dead only weeks before:

Attracting symbiotic friends who’ve doubtless hungered in hibernation:

The drone of dozens of furry-bottomed bumblebees is heard beneath a vibrant rhododendron in full bloom:

Who litters the ground with dazzling petals as soon as they trade nectar for pollen:

Nearby plum trees look snow-laden as their rising sap triggers an explosion of white:

Clusters of the colourless beauties are like clouds on sticks whose petals rain from above like floral snow:

A plump wood pigeon, kereru, swoops in to sample the sweet nectar:

At this time of year everything tastes good: