by Emma Cooper

Created on: January 29, 2008

When I worked in an air-conditioned office all day, and drove to and from work, my only interaction with the weather was on the short walk to and from the car park. Now that I work from home I'm much more appreciative of the changing seasons and the unique beauty each one has.

As a gardener, I love spring - the chance to sow seeds and watch plants grow and unfold. New life comes to the garden and I'm out there with it, enjoying the lengthening days and the first warm sunshine of the year. Through my window I can hear the garden birds singing, and watch them as they choose their mates and start to raise families. In the kitchen we can leave the cabbages and root vegetables of winter behind and munch on spring greens and fresh lettuce.

During the hot and sunny days of summer, I can sit and watch the plants growing. I don't live in a particularly hot place, but I have a greenhouse and can grow tasty summer treats like tomatoes, peppers, aubergines and cucumbers. The greenhouse is a magical place on a sunny day, hot and humid and full of plant smells. For a few moments each day you can imagine you live in a fertile jungle, and are harvesting the fruits of the forest! Outside in the garden there are more temperate fruits ripening - the first strawberries of the season are the most wonderful gift, but the raspberries won't be ready for a while yet.

The cooler weather of the fall lets us breathe a sigh of relief and watch as the fall rains water parched ground and bring a new flush of green growth to the garden. The raspberries are ready - if I've beaten the birds to the harvest - and it's time to plant greens in the greenhouse for winter harvests. The birds are enjoying the last days of warmth and sunshine and so am I, clearing up and getting the garden ready for winter. There's still plenty to harvest and be grateful for.

In winter, gardeners retire indoors and venture out only on the nicest days to check on plants and do a bit of winter digging in preparation for the spring. In the greenhouse my winter greens are growing well and providing fresh food for the kitchen. The birds are grateful for the scraps of food on the bird table, and happy to entertain me in return for a free meal. Now is the time to eat hearty meals of winter vegetables and to sit inside in the warm and dream of next year's garden. A time to rest and reflect and prepare for the new year ahead. Many of the plants in the garden are doing exactly the same, but there are signs of life everywhere you look - the buds on the fruit trees promise a bountiful harvest next year and the first of the bulbs are pushing up their green leaves, whether it's through the snow or just a carpet of fallen leaves.

Spring, summer, fall and winter - they're all needed to make the world the beautiful place that it is and I wouldn't miss out on any of them.

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