Wells Voice Article December 2021

Christmas comes… but once a year… is enough. 

Having behaved quite sensibly throughout the previous three seasons, garden centres at the end of the year throw off all appearances of reality and dress up in baubles and flashing lights amid a landscape of snowstorms, penguins and polar bears. It becomes a small challenge to locate a packet of sweet peas or a pair of gardening gloves. Quite why a blanket of whiteness should be the dominant and obligatory colour demanded by the commercial sector seems a little puzzling. After all, the climate is warming up and the danger is to swelter self-indulgently in front of the cosy fireside.

Enough of whiteness. Let us peer into the garden for the real winter colours. Winter is becoming greener and fruits are getting redder. Those are the real Christmas colours which we can see through the window. It’s time then to bring the winter garden into the house. Last year I complained that the cotoneaster watereri in the front garden bore very few fruits. This season it is excelling itself in providing a hugely decorative backdrop outside the window outclassing any further attempts to enliven the festive season. Perhaps just a touch of bling. After all, Christmas would not be Christmas without a bit of vulgarity.

What happens after the fun is still anybody's guess. On paper the Gardening Club has an event pencilled in for January but things still look uncertain. There is a first rate series of lectures and events waiting to be given the go-ahead. All I would say is to ask you to be patient and keep on gardening. All good wishes for Christmas and the New Year . Pip

 

But know the best season to laugh and to sing

Is summer, is winter, is autumn, is spring. (Old song)