Honey, You Got This

Jennifer Zurko

In one of Leigh Patterson’s recent Substack essays, she talks about how she’s felt “lobotomized” over the last few months. Things are moving so fast and she’s been getting through them on autopilot. Like if you were in a self-driving car going down the highway—you’ll eventually get to where you need to be, but in what condition is anyone’s guess.

“It’s like things have sped up so quickly that maybe they’re going backward now or at a different angle than before,” she wrote. 

It was time for an “existential cleanse.” Her yoga teacher tells her class to move through sequences like you’re “gliding through honey.” And she’s taken it one step further as a reminder to stop and try to recharge by thinking about swimming in slow motion through something viscous—”the elegance of letting resistance absorb some of your effort.” 

In her thinking, things will only continue to get faster and more chaotic, so not only is she thinking of new ways to stay afloat, but to re-arrange her approach to difficult things so that she can continue to move forward. 

“When the bread goes stale, bake a new loaf. When the air feels stagnant, open a window. When nothing makes sense, make your own ...?”
And when you find yourself moving too fast and struggling to keep it all together, stop and pretend like you’re gliding through honey. 

The gear-up toward spring is here and with it the major challenges that come with producing hundreds of plants in a small amount of time. One of those, we know, is managing insect attacks and disease outbreaks­—one bad situation can produce a domino affect that you may never recover from. You’re doing too much and going too fast as it is during this time­—our job is to help you handle it like “gliding through honey.” Well, at least make sure you have the latest information to help get you through any problems—or learn a new way of dealing with them. That’s what this issue is all about. 

We have details and deep dives into everything from handling pesticides safely and legally to dealing with root rot diseases in wood-based substrates, using biocontrols to clean up pest outbreaks, advances in the detection and ID of insects, and the most common insects on indoor plants. There’s plenty this month to, hopefully, keep your springtime trajectory more like warm, flowing honey instead of warp speed. 

I also want to point out the piece on the Green Profit side from Megan Taylor Morrison about burnout, how to identify it and how to help your employees deal with it. The timing of her piece is really ideal as we face the most stressful time in our industry. We could all use a reminder that burnout is real and should not be ignored. We all need help at certain points in our life to get through the challenging times and to maintain the productivity we’re used to without totally crashing out. We need each other­—and especially ourselves—to be mindful of when it’s too much and to have the right tools to get through it. 

Leigh Patterson’s essay also had ideal timing, especially when she said our focus should not necessarily be on optimism, per se (and definitely not on nihilism), but “a third position you build yourself.” Coming up with inventive solutions to work your way through the chaos. Not refusing to choose, but to choose another way to deal with it.

If you can do that, it’s easier to envision that buffer of honey to help you glide through. And that’s a pretty sweet thought.  

Here’s to you getting through the spring! GT