Winter Dreaming

It's a sunny and cold winter day here - everything is blanketed in white after a few days of fluffy snow. I have always loved winter - but what I've noticed since I started farming is that spring seems to creep up very quickly! Winter is busier for a flower farmer than one might think - planning the layout of next year's beds, researching new varieties and seed sources, and ordering from many different suppliers. And in the next couple of weeks I will be planting the first of many seeds to be started indoors to be ready for planting out in May.

It's always exciting when the seed packages arrive in the mail - dreams of what's to come. I will be growing lots of new things from seed this year - including larkspur, cerinthe, sweet william, clary sage, sunflower, bells of ireland, amaranth and broom corn - and more varieties of dahlias, zinnias, cosmos, snapdragon, and sweet peas. I can't wait!

Then I close my eyes and can see the hundreds of daffodil and tulip bulbs that my dear friend Cherie and I planted on a cold rainy day last September, and the wee purple coneflower and alchemilla plants nestled in their new beds, all protected under a layer of straw and snow and waiting for the right moment to spring up. Yes, winter is a perfect time for dreaming.