Winter gardening

Today: temperature above freezing; no wind; no mist. So, I went out to sweep or pick up leaves. Now, Monty Don will tell you that leaves are not rubbish but a harvest. He also tells you that, put in a black bag, dampened well, they will give you lovely leaf mould in a year. I’ve found this not to be true; it takes at least two. So, even though my leaves are mostly oak (which makes good leaf mould), they are in the brown bin rather than a black plastic bag.

Prowling round the garden, I saw plenty of daffodil and snowdrop shoots. What pleased me most was to find, once I’d moved a few leaves (I leave them on the beds over winter), that the snowdrops which I transplanted in the green last year are pushing up little snouts among the hellebores, just as planned.

The Napoleon Diaries

I’m reading Andrew Roberts’ Napoleon the Great, which is a very long book indeed. I wish I’d thought of this before: noting each day his career trajectory.

Previously: er, I've decided not to bore everyone with what I've already read.

This morning, against all the odds and in spite of making strategic mistakes, he won the battle of Marengo!