THE first signs of spring are beginning to show at Batsford Arboretum with a swathes of snowdrops showing warmer weather could be on the way.
While much of the south of the country continues to suffer from the effects of the floods, the 56-acre arboretum escaped the worst of the recent storms and the snowdrops mark the start of a spring-flowering bulb extravaganza.
Head Gardener Matthew Hall said the best of the snowdrops would be there until next week.
"You've also got Aconites, Cyclamen, Helebore and January Daffodils. There's something now practically every day coming through.
"Spring is definitely springing. It's fantastic, you've had all this bad, miserable weather and you start seeing seeing signs of life like daffodils and snowdrops.
"It's an amazing place to be."
The arboretum is throwing open gates in aid of the National Gardens Scheme (NGS) on Sunday with all the entrance money going towards the nursing, caring and gardening charities chosen by the NGS.
Batsford is open daily from 10am to 5pm.
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