It's now 60 days since this season's guests started to germinate, and since many of them are already flowering I thought I'd start this thread as I'm revisiting the early 'tell' of flower colour and the size of buds and number of petals as early clues about the fruit.
After the hotel was invaded last season by thieves (slugs and fungus gnats) and by dating agencies other than the hotel's own (wild bees) we opted for a complete change of bedding, which hasn't been entirely successful since I spotted two days ago a tiny metallic blue bee among the early guests. A carpenter bee the size of a small rodent buzzed the place yesterday and made a huge racket trying to get in through a vent - which fortunately failed.... for now. In the circumstances early tells are even more important, to reassure me that the arranged marriages are going as planned or to let me know of any clandestine affairs.
42 guests have already been accomodated so far in the space which is suitable for 24, and another 20 are waiting in their beer cups at the bar. As in other years, the plan is to move avid campers as well as those who don't demonstrate their intention to pay, out into a patio, bus shelter, walled city, converted shed or other extension that doesn't technically exist.
Luckily there are more immediate things to worry about, such as the quality of the bedding and whether the guests are happy, and of course, detective work to see if anyone is using a fake ID.
