Winter on Scilly

Quiet, cosy and quintessentially Scilly. Winter is the time of year when locals draw breath and visitors enjoy a true taste of island life. A time to enjoy windswept walks and appreciate the low winter light raking across the isles, to hunker down as the storms whistle through, and watch the slate grey waves whip the rocky coastlines. And a time to come together in cosy island pubs, huddle around log fires, and enjoy the Scillonian banter!

For Scilly’s flower farmers though, winter is a busy time of year. From the end of October through to early March, varieties of scented narcissi, from paperwhites to Erlicheer, are grown in tiny fields – the dainty stems protected from strong Atlantic blasts by tall pittosporums.

The farmers, too, are protected against the elements in yellow oilskins as they pick and sort the flowers by hand. Every day, boxes of these delicate flowers are sent to the UK’s mainland – a glorious reminder of Scilly out of season.