Potager Field Notes: May

May arrives in a burst of vibrant green with the ancient fire celebration of Beltane. The mornings are filled with robin song and the nights with the sounds of peepers just waking up. My birthday is in mid-May, and I always look forward to the lily of the valley and spring bulbs. The potager is brimming with life as young seedlings make their transition from indoor trays into the rich garden soil. Warm sunshine fills the studio, carrying the fragrant promise of long summer days ahead.

IN THE POTAGER 
May is planting time in the potager. Once the threat of hard frost passes, we harden off and transplant our tender seedlings including sweet peas, calendula, zinnia, chamomile and lemon balm into their summer beds. Our fruit trees are beginning to bud up for an amazing display in June.

IN THE STUDIO 
May brings a shift toward light, airy summer fragrances. We begin preparing our summer pouring schedules, blending herbal blends of lavender, apple blossom and lemon. Sunlight streams through the studio doors as we prep curing shelves for handcrafted soaps and assemble seasonal gift sets.

CRAFTSMANSHIP 
Transplanting seedlings from studio trays to outdoor garden beds is the foundation of our botanical craft. Tending these plants by hand throughout the spring and summer allows us to harvest the purest botanical ingredients for future soaps and simmer spells.

MAY STARGAZING 
The Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower lights up the early morning skies in May, created by debris from Halley’s Comet. Gaze eastward before dawn to catch fast-moving meteors streaking across the spring sky. Perfectly aligning with Beltane on May 1 keep an eye out for the full Flower Moon. And, on May 31 there is a second full moon within the same month making it a Blue Moon.

BOTANICAL FOLKLORE 
Beltane and the arrival of early summer have historically been celebrated with floral garlands and botanical blessings. Early herbal lore held that May dew gathered from flowers at dawn possessed beautifying and protective qualities, honoring the peak abundance and vitality of blooming nature.