ne’er cast a clout …

It was cold when I went out into the garden first thing this morning; cold enough that I had to resort to a winter jumper.  I cursed the weather, blaming May itself - as if the month had any control over my comfort.

Then I remembered the old saw - “ne’er cast a clout till May be out”.  I realise a passing scholar of 15th Century English will remark that ‘May’ refers to both the month and the tree of that name.  This is why we have the word 'pedantic'.  I’m on safer ground with reference to my winter jumper though, ‘clout‘ being Old English for cloth or clothes.

I thought about the olden days - well before Climate Change had been invented - and the old boys I worked with, who first sparked my interest in gardening; they would never plant out their summer bedding before the 1st of June.  Why? Because May can be cold.  Cold enough to kill off tender shoots.

I guess it’s been in the last 20 years or so that DIY stores and Garden Centres have been encouraging us to buy bedding plants at Easter.  I always say to Anniemay that it’s too early.  But she quite reasonably points out that if we wait until the beginning of June there’s nothing left - they’re making space for Xmas.

So - the upshot is that I am being quite unreasonable ranting at poor old May, because there’s nothing unusual about this particular month having cold spells.  We’ve just become used to warm Springs over the past few years.

I urge you to join me and not cast your winter clouts into the back of the wardrobe for at least another couple of weeks.