So… how was yesterday?
HA!!!!!
Let me tell you something. Yesterday was the kind of cold where you start questioning whether you actually need to leave your bed ever again.
I got up in the morning with every intention of going to Sylvia Pass Nursery and opening the shop. I had things to do. I had work waiting for me. I had messages to answer, quotes to do, marketing to sort out and a nursery that, unfortunately, does not run itself just because Terry has decided winter is offensive.
So I got myself ready.
Well… when I say I got myself ready, I mean I warmed up every item of clothing with the heater before putting it on.
Yes.
Every.
Single.
Item.
I was basically ironing myself with a heater.
Underwear? Warm it up.
T-shirt? Warm it up.
Jersey? Warm it up.
Pants? Warm them up.
At one point I was standing there with clothes draped around the heater like I was running a laundromat.
And then I got dressed.
Layers upon layers.
Nothing matched.
My hair was shoved into a hoodie.
I had absolutely no fashion sense left.
Winter Terry is not interested in looking cute. Winter Terry is interested in survival.
And just as I was getting ready to leave, I stood there and thought…
Why?
Why am I doing this?
Does it actually make sense to open a nursery when it is so cold that even the plants look like they want a blanket?
So I made the executive decision.
I stayed home.
And before anyone gets jealous thinking I spent the day lounging around doing absolutely nothing, let me clarify.
I was still working.
I did marketing.
I answered messages.
I did quotes.
I dealt with nursery business.
I just did it from underneath a blanket.
Because apparently I have reached the stage of entrepreneurship where the office is wherever the heater is.
Then came supper time.
And this is where I realised just how bad it was.
I couldn’t cook.
THE KITCHEN FELT LIKE A FRIDGE.
I stood there thinking about making supper and my body simply refused to participate.
Why don’t we have proper indoor heating in South Africa?
Seriously.
Why are we all just expected to walk around our homes wearing three layers, slippers, socks, hoodies and blankets while holding a cup of something hot?
In other countries people have proper heating.
Meanwhile, here we are sitting next to little heaters that look like they were designed to warm one teaspoon of water.
Safe to say, next year I am putting a fireplace in my bedroom.
I have decided.
There will be no committee meeting.
There will be no consultation.
There will be a fireplace.
Because guys…
I AM A SUMMER GIRL.
I know I own a nursery.
I know I should probably be embracing the seasons.
I know winter has its place.
I know the gardens need rain.
I know the soil needs moisture.
I know that after all the August dust we’ve had flying around, yesterday’s rain was actually a blessing.
And I am grateful for it.
I really am.
But being grateful for rain and wanting to personally live in a permanent summer climate can both be true.
Ya ya ya.
I know.
The gardens needed it.
The plants needed it.
The dust needed it.
Everything needed it.
BUT TERRY DID NOT NEED THAT TEMPERATURE.
My bones have officially lodged a complaint.
And the funny thing about owning a nursery is that every time I complain about the cold, I look around at all my plants and think…
Well, at least somebody here is happy.
Because gardening teaches you something whether you want to learn it or not.
Plants don’t get to choose the weather.
They have to adapt.
They have to wait.
They go through cold periods, dry periods, wet periods, heat, wind, storms and everything else Mother Nature decides to throw at them.
And then, when the conditions are right, they start growing again.
That is probably one of the things I love most about gardening.
You can look at a garden in winter and think it looks a little tired, a little bare and a little lifeless.
But underneath the soil, there is still plenty happening.
Roots are sitting there.
Plants are resting.
Some are preparing for their next flush of growth.
Some are getting ready to flower.
And some are simply waiting for that little change in temperature that tells them spring is coming.
Which brings me back to the nursery.
Because although I might be sitting here complaining about the cold like a woman who has personally been betrayed by August, things are actually starting to happen.
I’m expecting deliveries this week.
And there is colour coming.
Beautiful colour.
I’ve already had a few people walking into the nursery looking for something to brighten up their gardens, and I completely understand.
After weeks of winter, everyone starts looking for that little bit of life.
A splash of colour.
A new plant.
A flowering shrub.
Something that makes you look at your garden and think, okay, we’re getting somewhere now.
And that is exactly what I’m looking forward to.
Getting Sylvia Pass Nursery ready for that transition from winter into spring.
Because this is actually a brilliant time to start thinking about your garden.
You don’t have to wait until everything is flowering to start planning.
Look around your garden now.
What survived winter beautifully?
What looks miserable and needs replacing?
Where are the gaps?
Where do you need some colour?
Where could you add a tree?
Where could you put in a few shrubs that will give you something to look forward to when spring really gets going?
And if you’re anything like me, you will also suddenly realise that there is a space in your garden that has apparently been waiting for a plant for the last three years.
You know the one.
That empty corner.
The one you’ve been looking at every single time you walk past it.
The one where you’ve said, I’ll put something there.
And then three years later…
Nothing.
Just soil.
That space is calling you.
I can feel it.
So while I’m personally waiting for this cold snap to disappear and for my toes to regain feeling, I’m also getting excited about what’s coming into the nursery.
New stock.
New colour.
Spring approaching.
Gardens waking up.
And hopefully temperatures that don’t require me to dress like I’m preparing for an expedition to Antarctica.
Today I’m opening.
Because I cannot be closed for two days.
There is work to do.
Plants to look after.
Deliveries to receive.
Customers to help.
Quotes to send.
Gardens to plan.
And apparently, a whole lot of winter to survive.
So if you see me at the nursery today wearing approximately fourteen layers, just know that this is not a fashion statement.
This is survival gardening.
The Terry Chronicles continue.
One freezing morning at a time.
And somewhere between the cold snap disappearing and summer arriving, Sylvia Pass Nursery is going to be bursting with colour again.
And I, for one, cannot wait.
Because I am a summer girl.
Always have been.
Always will be.
Now… where is my heater?
Sylvia Pass Nursery
59 Frederick Street, Sylvia Pass, Observatory
061 805 9761
www.sylviapassnursery.co.za
Instagram: @sylviapassnursary
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