Garden and weather log: Monday the weather cooled off and we had a nice rain. The grass really shot up and so did the flowers. Today was in the 50s and was gray toward evening. Looks like it might rain again. Hot, cold, hot, cold. Definitely Michigan weather.

I found another sure sign of spring- the gopher that lives under our deck was out running around and antagonizing the dog.

The poplar trees in the backyard have their wormy looking things before the leaves come out. They are making a big mess on the patio-I just sweep it off.

No new flowers, but the wild columbine is growing fast. I brought some apple branches in the house to see how long it takes to force the flowers. The branches are quite lovely even without flowers or leaves.