The old refrain “April showers bring May flowers” has taken on a whole new meaning. We seem to have had plenty of rain and/or cloudy weather. The perennials are jumping out of the ground. The peonies are more than a foot high and, I swear, my astilbes grew several inches in a 24-hour period.

Virginia bluebells are blooming already. That is a worthwhile plant for the spring perennial border. Mertensia virginica has tiny bell-shaped blue flowers that start out pink. They multiply over the years. I have never noticed them in the nurseries. I cannot remember where I got mine since it’s been decades.

Speaking of bluebells, the English ones are just starting to bloom. They are a hyacinthusoides and form large carpets of color, also growing over the years.

I know it says in Exodus not to covet but, honestly, I cannot help myself. I plant daffodils yearly and never get the huge swaths of them that I see all over the place. I am completely jealous. For example, the entryway to Polly Hill is loaded with them.

I forget, every year, how many spring plants pop up reliably. Variegated Solomon’s seal is one of them and already I am noticing the pips of lily-of-the-valley. It’s good that it is so lovely in the spring because it really loses its appeal mid-summer. I always regret planting them when they are all brown, ugly and impossible to remove. One time I tossed a large clump into the woods upside down. It lived and is covering several square feet.

The vegetable garden is beginning to shape up. Thanks to my daughter’s help, I got all the early onions and cabbage into the ground. I had started both a month or so ago in my greenhouse and they were overgrowing the flats.

Honestly, a person cannot catch a break. The very day we planted the cabbages I saw two white cabbage moths having a romantic encounter. How is that even right? It would be nice to have a couple of weeks in the spring before the onslaught of pests.

Some garlic which had been inadvertently overlooked during last season’s harvest have emerged as several scallion-like clumps. I cut several and used the flavorful sprigs in a soup stock. I pulled up the winter crop of spinach. I was able to salvage enough nice leaves for two quiches. The chickens are seriously producing eggs right now so quiche and custards are a must.

For years I’ve prided myself concerning my consumer awareness. I use rags instead of paper towels, buy drinks in glass rather than plastic, never us plastic straws or the tops on purchased coffee. Then, the efforts of the Island’s elementary school children have made me further aware. The parents of those children must be so proud. They raised those children to not only be aware of environmental hazards but to take political action to address those hazards. Imagine speaking at a town meeting in sixth grade?

At any rate, now every time I open a container or think about product purchases I am shocked by the plastics. Even glass sparkling water bottles have a ring of white plastic around the metal top. How about the strips of sealant on every prepared deli item?

For years, I have bought plugs and bare-rooted perennials for my business. There is a company called Proven Winners. They sell some of the nicest hybrids and newest plant selections to the wholesale plug company that I use (Walters Gardens in Zeeland, Mich.) But if I want one of the Proven Winners I am required to also buy a plastic pot for each plant. The pot is white with the name emblazoned on it. In other words, it is ugly and cannot be sued by itself. This fact irritates me so much that I will not buy the product.

I’m old and I hate the fact that my generation and the previous one are leaving our precious children a plastic-clogged planet not to mention one with an unpredictable and dangerous climate.

Let’s see what else? Impeach?