Alexandra Oakley 
Going to work in the dark and coming home in the dark always makes me lean heavily on old summer photos at this point in January. I have thousands of them by now and I am not ashamed to say I scroll through them regularly to remind myself what all the seed trays, fleece and muddy compost are for.
The slightly milder weather has been a relief after what felt like endless seedling protection in the shed and little zippy greenhouse. I have already sown sweet peas, ammi, snapdragons and strawflowers, and this weekend I am doing more ranunculus because I never seem able to resist them. I am also still thinking about planting combinations for the year ahead, especially the warm jewel-coloured border and the shadier spots that need a bit more love.
