Neville Longbottom (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
alt_neville) wrote2014-12-10 07:44 pm
alt_neville) wrote2014-12-10 07:44 pm
Winding up chores in the greenhouses
I had a melancholy realisation today as I was puttering around Greenhouse 4, finishing putting the last of the fall experimental harvest to bed: for the Herbology NEWT students, now is pretty much the end of our time at Hogwarts, as far as our own research, I mean. I'll help plant seeds and set out flats in the spring, but I won't be here next autumn to take note of which crossbreeds thrived the most through the growing season (good thing, I suppose, because after six and a half years, my garden notebook is so stuffed with sketches and notes that the only thing holding it together is a charm and Spell-O tape.)
I love the greenhouses in the winter, though, even though the season's work is mostly done, and the holiday greens have been taken up to the castle to deck the Great Hall. It's always warm, for one thing, which is nice. But it's quiet, and the colours are more muted (except for the tropical section, of couse). It's not as busy as the library, right before exams, which makes it an excellent place to revise. I've spent so much time here doing chores (watering, turning the compost pile, and recording observations) that Professor Sprout has let me carve out my own niche at one of the rickety tables with cupboards above them at the back of Greenhouse 4, so I don't have to carry my tools back and forth a lot.
Merlin. I have months to go, but already I'm getting nostalgic. But I've learned so much here, so I guess I'm feeling grateful. I've figured out what I want to do with my life: developing plants that'll make better potions. And I'm quite proud of the Memorial Garden. It's nice to think that's something that'll continue to thrive and grow after I leave school.
I love the greenhouses in the winter, though, even though the season's work is mostly done, and the holiday greens have been taken up to the castle to deck the Great Hall. It's always warm, for one thing, which is nice. But it's quiet, and the colours are more muted (except for the tropical section, of couse). It's not as busy as the library, right before exams, which makes it an excellent place to revise. I've spent so much time here doing chores (watering, turning the compost pile, and recording observations) that Professor Sprout has let me carve out my own niche at one of the rickety tables with cupboards above them at the back of Greenhouse 4, so I don't have to carry my tools back and forth a lot.
Merlin. I have months to go, but already I'm getting nostalgic. But I've learned so much here, so I guess I'm feeling grateful. I've figured out what I want to do with my life: developing plants that'll make better potions. And I'm quite proud of the Memorial Garden. It's nice to think that's something that'll continue to thrive and grow after I leave school.