As always, the year starts with big plans and a long to do list. 2023 being no exception, this year alongside our usual trading at Hexham Market we are planning on opening the Nursery to the public during the growing season and also extending our range of cut flowers. This means a lot of tidying and sorting, not only to make the nursery more presentable but also to make it easier to plan and grow accordingly. However, as many know, and with Burns Night appearing in January I am reminded of the following lines in Robert Burns’ To a Mouse:
The best laid schemes o’ Mice an’ Men
Gang aft agley
Particularly in January the plans made can often go wrong, a mixture of short days cutting into daylight hours and the weather not playing ball can bump jobs into a different direction. Sometimes its not worth fighting against it and just taking a day or two of quiet reflection instead. Saying this, we did manage to tick a good few major jobs off the list.
The first major task (and a new one to us) was planting out some ‘cool’ flowers that we had sown back in October. These are half hardy annuals that can tolerate the cold winters and will hopefully extend our cut flower season. As trials go it has so far been successful, a few varieties haven’t made it through so they are crossed off next years early sow list. The plants in the ground have been through wind, rain, snow and frost and still looking fairly chirpy so fingers crossed for a good show of colour middle to late spring.
Jobs with our pot grown and open ground perennials and shrubs is very dependant on the weather, frozen compost/ground/plants make it very difficult to work with them. So, these colder days were filled with the mundane, sorting tools, trays, fittings, pots and bits and pieces along with a general tidy of workspaces in the polytunnels and sheds. On clearer days we took the opportunity to top dress and pot on our climbers, some shrubs and some herbaceous. At this time of year, we also dig up and divide some of our herbaceous perennials, this allows us to reproduce fully hardy stock that has survived the winter here.
Our stall at Hexham Market began January rather bare after the colourful spectacle of December. The display of bird care products and eggs remaining the one constant, alongside some evergreen shrubs that had beaten back the winter cold. Towards the middle of the month our potted spring bulbs began poking through and by the end of the month we are starting to see some colour appear with the Tete a Tete and dwarf iris leading the way. Our primroses, bellis daisy and forget-me-nots following suit and beginning to burst into colour showing early promise for the year to come.
Although not fully to plan, January went smoothly at Shield Green. The weather presented some challenges but we adapted and changed jobs, so we are still working towards our growing goals. February presents similar challenges, we will continue tidying and sorting, working with plants when the weather allows and look forward to the signs of early spring.