Category : Quotes

"… the greater part of my spring happiness is due to the scent of the wet earth and young leaves."

 — Elizabeth and her German Garden, Elizabeth von Arnim

Potatoes and Dreams

Should I be surprised that two of my favourite authors have yielded such satisfying horticultural quotes? It seems a fitting way to properly start my blog. Having grown up with very green-fingered relatives, and then having married someone of the same ilk, while I am not the leading gardener of the family, growing things – and, increasingly, growing them to eat – has always been a part of life.

“I don’t want to be famous … I only want to live in peace and plant potatoes and dream!” – Moomintroll in Tove Jansson’s Moomin

As a proofreader/editor, my main experience to date has focused on texts with a horticultural and environmental focus, and I have enjoyed every minute of working on them. I have found particular issues crop up when proofreading and editing this sort of work, and knowing a little about plant naming has helped, although there are plenty of reference books and websites that can shed further light.

It occurred to me that others, whether writing about horticultural matters or editing them, might encounter similar problems. So I thought I would put them in my blog. It won’t all be instructional or advisory – some of it will be purely for fun and the enjoyment of sharing favourite plants and books. I will also write on more general themes inspired by my work, reading and life in general.

I hope you will come along!