IN THE GARDEN AIRA collection of 24 short stories Dorothy used to hate the noise of lawnmowers starting up, like a kind of horticultural Mexican sound wave, but that was before Luke was the one in charge of the machine. Betsie used to hate the awful Valentine's gimmicks people used to impress friends and colleagues rather than showing their feelings to one special person. Actually she still dislikes those, but she loves the genuine sign of affection Tim gave her - almost as much as she loves the man himself.Maria is desperate for it not to rain, she'll die if it does, or at least thinks so. Suzie wants to gather those she cares about close to her as though assembling a posie and Hilary feels as though her new neighbours are like the lily of the valley creeping from their garden to hers; neither use nor ornament. Then they learn to look below the surface and see what's truly important.When Primrose retired, her colleagues showed they cared about her with gifts of primroses, items decorated in her favourite flowers, or in primrose yellow. Trudie was thanked, and maybe apologised to, with the purchase of flowers. For others the perfect way to get their message across is less obvious and they resort to sharp thorned roses, daisy chains or floral portraits.Gardens, plants and people all have their stories. Breathe in the garden air and let me tell you a few. Patsy Collins spends her time making things up and writing them down from her home in Lee-on-the-Solent or whilst traveling in a campervan - both shared with her husband. When away she enjoys scrambling round ruined castles, visiting friends and eating cake. At home she gardens, bakes (and then eats) cakes.She is the author of several stand alone novels, the Little Mallow cosy crime series and twenty-four themed collections of short stories. Hundreds of her short stories have been published in women's magazines

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