This has led many to fear that our precious almond tree, with its very small crown, will freeze. For, as before, it has not been misled by the occasional scare stories in the weather reports of recent weeks.
By the end of January, I was already worried that it would bloom within days and that any hope of an annual almond crop would be dashed. But we have to take it easy, almond trees are like that. They are brave and bold, and although global warming is unfortunately a fact, 500 years ago Janus Pannonius' flowering almond tree was covered in snow. 

On 16 February, I gave it just two days to bloom, but Suzanna day came with rain and cool weather, so not a single flower opened until the morning of Friday 23 February, while in the afternoon we could only draw lots to see which flower was the first this year. 

Two days ago, everyone was greeted by the image of a blossoming tree from the end of the car park. However,  my colleagues who arrived before me could see buds and flowers under the tree, too. A grey crow demonstrated his incomprehensible disgust this way. Luckily, since then it calmed his anger and stopped this activity. 

The almond tree has been thriving ever since, and we hope it won't freeze this year, even in the colder March. 

Let's not walk past it blindly, let's rejoice in its presence now to beautify our barren backyard, and let's think of it in the summer when we might need to water the little soil around it.