This beautiful picture appears on the Telegraph's website this morning, and makes a delicious header for my list of gardening tasks to do this morning. Clear skies overnight made for a stunning display of stars, and a "red sky in the morning," dawn. Makes it jolly cold, too. So here I am, my breakfast of toasted prune and chocolate bread and the ubiquitous cup of tea to hand, listing tasks;

move that blasted damson tree; it's far too close to the bay which, I think, taints the flavour of the damson gin;

move that blasted apple tree; it snags the sheets when hung on the line;

prune out the autumn offshoots on the espalier pear;

unsubtle pruning of the vine really ought to be complete by late winter.

Of course, it's far too early to be moving the damson, as stone fruits really need delicate and well-timed handling. But sometimes irritability outweighs horticultural sense. Now let's get moving, we have a glorious morning in the garden calling to us.