Slowing Down in a Fast Season

Summers in Maine are fleeting, magical, and packed with life. It feels like we wait all winter for that first green sprout to break through the cold soil. Then we wait again, eagerly, for the next round of early blooms to arrive.

Even as we admire the beauty of yarrow, iris, and other early-season stars, there’s always that quiet question in the back of our minds: What flowers are coming next?

The Pressure of a Short Season

Here in Maine, we’re working with a growing season that lasts just about 120 days—give or take—depending on your exact zone. Most of southern Maine falls into USDA Zones 5 and 6, while northern parts dip into Zone 4. That doesn’t leave a lot of wiggle room.

To put those 120 days into perspective:

• Lettuce (romaine, butterleaf) needs about 30 days from germination to harvest. You could theoretically fit four successions in, but realistically—between weather, timing, and life—it’s probably closer to two.

• Tomatoes range widely by variety, but most take 80–100 days.

• Peppers come in a bit quicker at 60–80 days, but they require consistent heat to thrive. Our cool springs and early summers often delay that start.

• And then there are the real risk-takers, like Luffa, which need a full 120 hot, frost-free days. I’ve grown them several seasons and, let me tell you, they’ll test your patience, optimism, and planning skills all at once.

  
  

With such narrow margins and so many variables, it’s easy to get wrapped up in the timelines and harvest charts. There’s very little room for error. And in the hustle to keep things alive, thriving, and on track, it can be hard to pause and just enjoy what’s already growing.

The Challenge of Staying Present

As I’ve shifted into professional gardening and design, it’s gotten harder to stay present in my

own space. I find myself standing in the garden, everything in bloom, and my mind is already jumping to what I’ll change next year. What needs to move. What didn’t work. What could’ve been better.

It’s not that those thoughts are wrong—but they pull me out of what’s actually happening right now. It’s easy to get caught up in chasing the next thing, especially when the season is short and there’s so much pressure to make the most of it.

But if I’m not careful, I miss the whole point.

Sit. Observe. Enjoy.

Lately I’ve been trying to slow myself down, even if just for a few minutes. I sit, I look around, and I try to actually notice what’s happening in the garden. Not as a designer. Not as a to-do list. Just as a person who worked hard to grow this space.

It doesn’t always feel natural. I have to remind myself that in just a few months, I’ll be missing this—the warmth, the colors, the sounds, the light. So I practice being here for it.

I sit. I observe. I enjoy.

And I try to do it again tomorrow.

That’s the practice.

– Sara | The Magic Sprout