Since we are now in the 'merry month' according to 16th century Elizabethan poetry and with a bank holiday at each end to boot, Izzy has opted to rake out the old chestnut, 'n'ere cast a clout 'till May is out.' Whichever camp you subscribe to, ie whether the old saying refers to the outgoing fifth month or to the sprouting of the heady, spring like fragrance of the hawthorn tree's blossom, the state of the weather, as usual, is at the root of it.
Casting clouts in Izzy's granddad's day meant a clip round the ear for being cheeky or naughty delivered by an exasperated parent, whilst a clout nail is the shortish galvanised variety with a large round head used for fixing roofing felt and a French clout is also a nail, but without the 't' and pronounced 'Kloo'. The 'clout' in our saying, though, refers to a piece of cloth or clothing which may well still be needed for warmth before the arrival of more reliably higher temperatures in June, although with our now wildly erratic climate freezing us one day and frying us the next, reliability with regard to the weather is a historical thing of the past.
However, in response to the exceptionally warm start to the month, garden centre proprietors will be delighted at the growing crowds and the ker-ching of their cash registers, or whatever the smartphone payment method sounds like these days, as keen purchasers flock to the Sunday afternoon sessions of stocking up on the mesmerising ranks of carefully nurtured, healthy, freshly watered and eminently tempting arrays of colourful bedding plants and shrubs marking time before being carried away on a tide of good and avid intentions by the trolleyful and loaded into bulging car boots for whisking away to a waiting garden or patio.
Where to place or plant all of these newly purchased goodies? Did you consider that before buying? Have you 'overbought'? Quite often as with many things, less is more and just as that last and unnecessary glass of wine will detract from the earlier enjoyment, so too much unplanned and erratic planting can have the same effect. Izzy's great aunt Rene who with her husband, great uncle Ron were inveterate coach travellers journeying everywhere from Cornwall to Callander always returning with the corresponding table mats and tea towels for all and sundry. On returning from one her trips to the Scottish highlands, she was asked how much had they enjoyed the experience. 'It was OK', she replied, 'but everywhere you looked there was just scenery' illustrating again that you can have too much of a good thing and the danger of not being able to see the garden for the garden.
So, before your next visit to your local garden centre, spare a few thoughts as to what you want to buy and where it will fit in to your scheme of things or, as great Aunt Rene would have said, normally when chiding one of the nieces or nephews,....' 'think on'.
