Grow with Spring This Weekend

Spring brings with it opportunities for growth in so many ways. Obviously, the garden is calling out for love,  with the seductive promise of fresh new vegetables and sweet fruit as the year progresses. But that’s far from the only way to get growing this weekend.

Grow Your Attention to Detail

Look closely and you can find beauty in a scrubby patch of grass or a flower growing through the pavement. With a steady hand, you’d be surprise at the detail your phone can capture if you get close enough.

Grow Your Sense of Wonder

Nature creates moments of wonder every day. From finding frogspawn to searching for the first ducklings of the year, or simply looking up, let nature show you something truly magical.

Grow Your Bank Balance

Nature has a host of money saving opportunities, from making new-season nettle soup or dandelion salad to crafting with natural ‘finds’ or making your own herbal toiletries.

And of course, spending an afternoon feeding the birds or walking in the countryside is a free way to have fun (take a thermos of tea or bottle of home made squash to stay hydrated as you walk – though a hip flask of homemade elderberry port will also warm a chill spring day.)

Keep your eyes open for finds too – the Wombles had the right idea: I’ve found abandoned clothes, rain-soaked books and broken jewellery that have all been as good as new (if with ‘character’) once I’ve given them some care or added them to my crafting box to create something new. (The doll below started life as old tights, fabric scraps and natural finds including swan feathers.)

Grow Your Creativity

Research has shown that spending time in nature can reduce stress and boost creativity.  From Wordsworth to William Morris, nature has inspired great artists. Let it inspire you.