Cold and Hairy

Morning all,

Blimey that was a cold one, and I think we got off lightly compared with some. Luckily it looks like a milder spell over the next week and that takes us another few days towards the end of official winter and closer to those madly busy spring weeks. PST (Pre Season Tension) is creeping in as we get closer to that great unknown, what will the spring be like and can last summers momentum be maintained? Fingers crossed everything is with us this time, I'm not sure how we could manage another rollercoaster year like 2020. The signs are positive for a buoyant market and I'm still not really sure whether to be excited or scared. Preparations here are still bowling along and we certainly have the potential for some little bonuses to be gained from nice little production tweaks here and there. Let's hope we can all benefit from a national gardening boom.

I got into mass silk screen printing mode last weekend, just before the really cold weather struck. We needed to restock our wooden POS board store so that everyone can have a new set of boards as they set up for the spring. It's not a job I particularly look forward to, if it goes well it is a nearly a joy and very productive, but if it doesn't, it gets very frustrating and very messy. You wouldn't believe how far you can spread black ink without even trying. The trick seems to be getting the ink at just the right thickness for a crisp finish and with just enough retardant in it to stop it drying too quickly and blocking the screen pores, but as the temperature fluctuates or wind changes direction it all goes pear shaped again.

My new header board cutter arrived this week and it looks like it is going to work nicely. I did a couple of test ones and just need to do a few more to refine my technique. There is one fold that isn't being pressed into the board quite positively enough but I'm hoping it might be ok on the bigger press. The cutting itself was perfect.

Spring is definitely close by, we took in our first compost delivery this week and three orders of young plants, although it was just too cold and windy to actually start potting, even with the new heaters in the potting area. Some plants came in from Holland, they arrived ok and on the day they were meant to, but we did get a knuckle-wrapping from APHA about the incorrect filling in of one of the Plant Phytosanitary Certificates. The shipment could have been stopped at the border but there is currently a grace period for the next week or two, while they sort out a few irregularities in the system. This is a form the Dutch authorities fill in and apparently there is a disagreement between the UK big wigs and the Dutch, on exactly what needs to be written on the certificates for some plants, so nothing the poor exporter could do about it. Sounds a bit like the lorry driver that couldn't be let through because he had a cheese and ham sandwich in the cab and no paperwork for importing dairy and meat products. What fun.

I've been making a real effort to keep my fluids up, as we all should, in this cold drying wind, but it does create its own frustrations in the bitter cold. There have been a number of instances of near-miss industrial accidents caused by the activities resulting from the extra consumption and laughing about it definitely makes it worse. It's been a two layer trouser week and thick long tailed shirts too, as I can't afford to find myself untucked, but that has led to some tense moments. A combination of forgetting I have two layers to fight through, extra shirt debris to negotiate around and a smaller target to find has been a challenge in itself, but when you then forget to restore the second layer to its correct position and find a gusset round your knees as you dismount the cubicle and down the step, it definitely gets more dangerous. Roll on the warmer weather before I embarrass myself any further.

Availability list highlights

Spring time is just round the corner and quite a few of the early spring bulbs are thrusting forth. We have colour on some of the Scilla and the Snowdrops (Galanthus) so don't miss out. Our Fritillaria (snakes head lily) are looking green and chunky with the odd flower stem and bud being produced already. The Crocus which took a rabbit haircut (or should that be hare-cut) last week, are recovering surprisingly well, so hopefully we recued them just in time and they may make a reappearance shortly.

We still have some great Helleborous niger and orientalis on the nursery. The long flowering little Cyclamen coum are available now. They are showing great colour and will flower all winter and well into the spring. Only available this year in a mixed colour range. We have a nice range of the evergreen Bergenia's in stock all propagated in our microprop lab, I can see the centre buds swelling ready to produce flower stems, so it won't be long before they do their thing. Pulmonaria's are budding up now with some colour showing on the Blue Ensign and lovely tight bold foliage on the other two with buds swelling.

I have two Scabiosa in bud, looking strong, and in the mild temperatures last week there was even the odd opening flower. I suspect with the eastern blast will have dented that rash gesture, but it just shows how close we are to some serious flowering activity. This early in the year their blue colouring definitely has a rosy hue, but colour is colour!

Take care out there, from all at Kirton Farm Nurseries