November

Notes From The Field

When the clocks went back, a funny sense of relief washed through me, as though somehow the longer nights meant I could allow myself to crawl into bed at a laughably early hour and let my deep exhaustion be cradled by the onset of darkness. It’s been a wild, wild year in so many ways, and never before have I been more excited for Winter.

Paris and I have been pricking out and potting on seedlings and now we’re practically swimming in them; trays here, there, and everywhere. We have grand plans of expansion to ensure that every seedling will have a home to grow into, but building something was always going to be a mammoth task and we’re having to remind ourselves that everything happens bit-by-bit no matter how much we long for it to happen all at once.

So for now the infinite seedlings have to live higgledy-piggledy together in a very small space, balancing everything on the windowsills, on the floor, on the tables and practically on the ceiling of the greenhouse too. We carry on sowing ranunculus corms regardless and watering the hundreds of sweet peas and all the while we will keep on chipping away at the grand expansion plan.

Amongst the heaven of the last flush of roses, which has been unexpectedly abundant in this mild Autumn, there have been moments of overwhelm this month too. I don’t know where my confidence has gone, but many lovely people have been messaging to let me know it’s a normal part of life with a newborn which has eased the anxiety over it- so thank you for all your kind words.

Hanging with the dogs helps. Forever grateful for them. They hate the cold and the rain, so they’ve been asking for more hugs than usual and I’m thrilled about it. I like Winter for the dogs being more up for a hug and the fact that there’s usually more time for crafting than the other seasons. Bring on a little knitting, a bit of drawing, cooking, making, mending; I love it all.

I think there can be layers of joy, loneliness, relief and overwhelm all at once at this time of year anyway. I’ve been getting messages full of worry from people asking if it’s too late to sow seeds.

The short answer is no, it’s not too late.

You can always sow seeds- some times of year are better than others, that’s all. The number of daylight hours is shrinking and that can affect the speed at which the seedlings will crack on and it can make them a little smaller and weaker- a bit ‘leggy’. But I’d say, sow some sweet peas if you want, and some larkspur and Daucus Carota too (they love these fluctuating temperatures) and then most of the rest you can comfortably leave to sow until March- they’ll catch up real quick of sown then, so you’re not behind I promise.

Here’s to leaning in to the cold and dark- let’s get cozy and fill this time with gentleness, rest, and nice creative things.