Mindful moments in my garden

And some thoughts on creating a beautiful community here on Substack.

As we move into the final weekend of May, everything is bursting with new growth. Leaves are in abundance. The somewhat miserable start to the season almost forgiven thanks to the presence of the morning sunlight, twinkling it’s own blend of perfection as the day begins.

Now that it’s light, and perhaps more importantly, warm in the morning I relish in being able to start my days outside. Dressed in pyjamas and dressing gown, mug of tea in hand, I wander. Taking my time to notice the little details that may well be gone by tomorrow. I balance my tea on top of a fence post as I stop to tie in some clematis. The cosmos needs pinching out, possibly the cornflowers too. Is that a new bud on the rose? Wait, where did I leave my tea?

Spring is really quite something when you stop and think about it. Take a moment to pause and appreciate the colours. Have you ever counted just how many different shades of green there in your garden?

I’m half way through planting out my seedlings. The rest, having spent the last week or so being hardened off, will go out this weekend. I still have some biennials to sow for next year, but for now it’s time to say thank you and goodbye to the zippy greenhouse for another year.

In terms of flowers, so far I have alliums (with which I’m slightly obsessed), forget me nots, foxgloves and aquilegias. We’re at that in between stage where everything feels in a state of limbo. I must get better at successional planting. It’s not so noticeable in the beds, but the containers are still looking a bit sad. It’s all part of learning though isn’t it? Taking note of what works and what doesn’t from one year to the next. I must admit it makes me feel a lot better to hear Monty Don sharing his mistakes and failures too. Even the most experienced gardeners have challenges it seems.

There’s temptation at this time of year to feel a sense of impatience. Willing the arrival of more flowers. But in the spirit of being mindful, I’m focusing on appreciating the here and now.

On days where I have nowhere to be I stretch out my mornings in the garden. Journaling in my “shoffice”, a second (and probably third) cup of tea. The wildflower mini-meadow is growing well. There aren’t any flowers yet, but the grass is long enough to sink my toes into which is the perfect way to ground myself and connect with the earth. Whatever my day ahead might hold, I’m grateful for this time.

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The power of Community.

Prompted by a question asked by

Claire Venus

in her post this week, I’ve been mulling over why I am here on Substack and what I want from this space

I joined six months or so ago when my business looked very different. Allowing myself and my work to evolve over these last few months has been wonderful and terrifying in equal measure.

But back to the question, why am I here? My goal first and foremost was to write. And here I am, a little further along my personal journey, writing about my garden and all the joy it brings me.

I love sharing my weekly journals. There’s something quite magical about sharing a little moment or observation from my week in the garden and having people enjoy hearing about it or feeling inspired by it.

But can I be a little bit honest? I find myself craving something else from this space too. I’ve come to realise that as well as sharing my writing, this thing I most desire is community. I want to share my thoughts and ideas with people who get it and who want to share their own right back. I want to create something that people want to be a part of. Where they feel they belong.

I’ve returned to this post several weeks later, having previously thought I would create a paid for membership space and then going full circle and realising that route doesn’t feel like a good fit for me. All of the posts here will remain 100% free to read. Forgive my indecisiveness but sometimes you have to start walking down the path in order to realise you went the wrong way.

Claire x