Welcome to as the season turns, a podcast following each month of the year, as the

head rose change, the full moons come and go, and nature takes its course in the

garden. I'm Leah Lander, as a nature writer and author of The Almanac, a seasonal guide. This

podcast is brought to you by Fern, makers of small batch organic natural perfume, who blend,

barrel age and bottle four fragrances a year, released at the equinoxes and solstices.

We hope that this brief guide to what to look for in the month ahead will awaken you to the rhythms

of the year and help you, in the words of the poet Ray Carver, settle deeper into the seasons.

I can't quite believe that May is really here. For me, May is the best month, the most gorgeous.

The month when late spring eases into early summer.

The sun starts to really warm, the birds to sing and the bees to buzz,

and the sky above my house is suddenly filled with glorious swooping screeching swifts,

apparently delighted to be back after their long winter in Africa.

Everything becomes easier in May, and the countryside looks completely beautiful, fresh and

young and perfect.

As a writer of annual almanacs, I have another reason to love May, because it's not just

me that sees something special in this month.

Historically, it has always been a month of magic,

of fairies and May Dew,

Jack in the Green, May Queens and Robin Hood.

There are some months which shall remain nameless

that I can struggle a little to fill.

It require not a little creativity to find content for

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