It is official: it’s spring. And yes, it has been raining buckets.

As I go by a mound of fragrant daphne, Daphne odora, I have to go back and smell again. A heady fragrance that is so pleasurable beside an entrance, stairs, a path. The dark-green evergreen leaves are simple, pointed at both ends, but the four-petalled flowers range from pale to deep pink, and they smell wonderful.

In our lane, the magnolias are blooming again: star magnolia (Magnolia stellata) and saucer magnolia (Magnolia × soulangeana). Just a week ago, both magnolias had barely thought of blooming. And now!

Apparently, the petals are edible and taste slightly gingery, says a friend of mine, who makes artificial magnolia blossoms for those in hospital who aren’t allowed to have strong scents around. And the petals can be fermented!

They even withstood the rain.