Early blooms along the quiet, rain-washed roads

St Dominick, Tamar Valley: The first primroses are splashed and muddy; pennywort and moss drip in the slate cuttings

Tall jonquils protrude through flailed woody growth on the top of hedgebanks near Dairy Mill. These fragrant narcissi, like the Double Lents or Van Sions, were valued as an early crop by the valley's market gardeners but only a few throw-outs survive. Mild weather has also expedited flowering of trumpeted daffodils but, around Burraton and Bohetherick, the blooms have been battered (and spoiled) by gales and heavy rain. Buds of later narcissi are opening in one of the few remaining bulb fields but these are too early for the traditional Mother's Day and Easter markets. The main outdoor crop is now eucalyptus (cut throughout the year for its foliage) with fruit and flowers grown in polytunnels.

Related: Signs of the industrious

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