A long Overdue Holiday

Got back from a long overdue holiday recently. If you’ve ever been to see our little bonsai nursery in Sheffield, you’ll know that we love what we do. We’ve had the place for nearly eight years now and it’s easily the best thing I have done in my life. The work is harder than you may think – but on a good day it can’t be beaten. On the flip slide, it’s pretty difficult to get time off.

In the past, we tried to take a holiday in summer. Any keeper of a bonsai tree collection will know that holidays take a little planning. It’s a good idea to have someone you can trust to water your trees. For people with a nursery, it’s a big-ask to expect people to take the watering duties in summer. So, we now close for much of January. A small craft business like ours can’t really afford staff if I’m honest. I’m also not going to pretend that we are a big corporate entity when we’re not. We’re very lucky though to have a small bunch on people who want to help us in the bonsai project. A big thanks to Linda, Kay and Norman (in no particular order) – without you we wouldn’t have been able to take a break.

Maybe in the future we’ll grow to the size where we can be a small team. Not sure if that’s part of the plan at the moment. For now we’re happy with growing the trees and running the place. All of your orders are gratefully received and prepared for shipping by myself and Jude. People tell me that the friendly, personal service is a big plus for them. Long may that continue.

Work-Life Balance

Anyway, thanks for bearing with us while we were away on our very long overdue holiday. Even though it’s a cool place to work, it’s important that we have a break once in a while. This is true for all people working anywhere. You can start to resent what you do if you don’t get a chance to get away from it now and again. Work-life balance is definitely a concept to be aware of, and burnout is also a real thing.

Hey-ho, we’re back now. Its blinking freezing. Got the long-johns back on, along with the scruffy coat and the fingerless gloves. Used to wear a suit for work lol. We’re heading into bonsai re-potting time shortly, so its time for Repotting and bonsai pots

Adam