The snow is gone, but the chill remains, and, with it, the absolutely grudging progress of what is, after all, supposed to be the growing season. Not much is happening on that front in the woods and fields, but in the garden, it's a different story. To be sure, everything is quite a bit behind, and even the early April stalwarts are not exactly blooming with any measure of abundance. But there certainly have been plenty of crocuses, the dwarf Iris are putting on a show, and the hellebores are offering blossoms to any takers, which, so far, have been pretty near non-existent. I've yet to see a bee. If, however, any hymenopterans are able to brave the less-than-inviting temperatures—it won't get out of the 40s today—they're sure to visit the garden Primroses, one clump of which always laughs off the cold and rolls out the floral welcome mat for hardy pollinators. Hardy naturalists, too.