Near daily precipitation last week kept the soil too wet for planting. Grass has started to turn green and lilacs are budding. Leaves from Spring Beauty, Purple Trillium, and Dutchman's Breeches are poking through the leaf litter on the forest floor, though none have yet flowered. Patches of wild leeks are thriving on the east slopes of Cole Mountain. Acorns from last fall that survived the squirrels, turkeys, deer and bears are splitting and sprouting. Basset Brook is flowing at a seasonal high level. Warm evening rain brought the Spotted Salamanders to join the Wood Frogs and Spring Peepers in our pond. A pair of Mallards as well as a pair of Canada Geese visited to forage and explore for nest sites. Lower elevation trails on Mt Greylock remain wet and occasionally muddy with patches of ice and snow higher up.