Swifts, Seedlings and the Stressipice

The spring days continue to push forward, and with them erupts the emerald volcano of spring growth. All of a sudden the swifts are screaming through Petersfield town square, the mint plants have gone mental and the dogs are covered in tics. Fully surrendering to the grow-your-own bug I’ve caught this year, I repotted my pumpkin seedlings this week (precious children) and bought even more seeds to sow in my window propagator. Soon I will have tiny beetroot shoots, courgettes, golden turnips and black kale, and then it’s only a step further to world domination. Every day I wander into the conservatory with a cup of coffee and stare lovingly at my pots and pots and pots of pumpkin seedlings, and I wonder if the spirit of spring is sending me a little bit mad.

And I tell you what else has been making me dizzy recently? The fact that our local council actually seems to be taking #NoMowMay seriously. Everywhere I walk - even in the middle of town - the verges have been left to grow long and there are wildflowers everywhere! My mum and I even identified a new one that was growing in patch of grass on my road - the tiny, pink doves-foot cranesbill. Google tried to convince me it was a ‘lawn weed’ which made me love it even more. Down with lawns, up with weeds!

Last weekend we also visited Gilbert White’s House in Selborne, one of my happy places. They were holding their annual Nature Day, and between the leafy crafts, slow worms and ice cream, I managed to slip away for a few minutes of calm with the sleeping baby. We visited a pocket of garden enclosed by luscious hedges, and admired the forget-me-nots and pansies growing in the beds. The sun was shining and the air scented with blossom.

This week, I’m finishing up a foreword for my friend’s book, working on the talk for my book launch at the Cowdray Estate on 28th June, and planning out a window display for the lovely Petworth Bookshop, who are organising the launch in partnership with Cowdray. It’s all incredibly enjoyable work, but I have come up with a word to describe my current situation: I am on the stressipice. I am just about on the right side of having too much work to do; one more thing, and I’ll topple over the edge. There’s a fine, fine line between achievement and overwhelm, and I am definitely walking that line. Thank goodness for my lovely kids, because time spent with them is time that I am forced to step away from the screen and remember what really matters in life. Emails and deadlines don’t seem so important when there’s hot cross buns to eat and green dock beetles to make friends with.