Thinking back to the start of the year, I mentioned that on
the previous Christmas day there were crocus shoots poking up through the
ground. Just this morning I was thinking how this year it must be colder as
that was not happening, but on my way to the compost bin I noticed some!
I am off work now until January 5th and it makes
a change to see the garden in good daylight, and thus be able to spot the
shoots. Time has flown by the last 2 months with only a few speedy excursions
in the garden. I’ve been busy in all facets of life and it is just as well I’m
not one of these people who have to have colour and interest in the garden
every month of the year. I have nothing against that philosophy – why shouldn’t
you enjoy gardening all year round? The only thing is, to do that you need to
be changing plants or have certain areas for certain seasons, or have a mix of
different seasonal plants in the same area – something that is tricky in a
small garden with not much storage space. I hear of some people who have
out-of-the-way ground to hold unseasonal plants – if only I had such space!
Also, you can only see most of our garden from 2 windows – that of our third
bedroom and the kitchen, neither of which is a seating area, so it is not like
we sit in the lounge or dinning room and gaze out to be able to see winter
colour from a nice warm comfy sofa - a
major drawback to our house.
As it happens, there is something nice and restful in not
having to have colour all the time, to allow the garden a time of dormancy, to
let things die down and have a winter, but maybe more so for this gardener to
have his dormancy. Maybe it is just as well that there is not a whole heap of
work to be forcing me outside right now as it is freezing! There are enough
left-over jobs outstanding without urgent work dragging me out in off-putting
weather. When you go out at all hours and in extreme cold or wet when you have
a young family snug and warm inside, it is then that you are starting a new
religion – of worshipping gardening or being a slave to the soil, and you run
the risk of being worn out or driven mad. It is good to sit down and spend what
would have been gardening time planning for the new year. I have drawn up a
rough plan of what will be grown where on the allotment – more of that later. I
have browsed those seed catalogues and decided what I would like to plant at
home next year – again, more details to follow, and I have a shelving unit to
put up in the conservatory to better organise my seedlings. My dear wife has
also raised the possibility of a mini greenhouse – one of those shelf units
with a plastic zip-up covering for simply raising seeds and hardening off
plants. So there is much to look forward to. I think the planning, looking
forward, getting excited and the anticipation of a new gardening calendar is a
good thing. The dormant period gives you a well earned rest; you can draw a
line under any failures, learn from mistakes and look forward. The combination
of stopping to rest and planning ahead is a real battery recharger, making you
ready to start again with gusto.
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