Songfacts®:

• The Sugaring Season album title is a reference to the time of year when maple trees are tapped for syrup. Beth Orton came across the phrase whilst spending time in her husband's home state of Vermont. She explained to The Observer that she used it as a metaphor for extracting sweetness out of situations. "It takes a lot of sap to make a little bit of syrup," said Orton. "But what makes the flow are these long, cold nights alternating with those ever so slightly warmer days – beauty and melancholy mixed together – and after that, that's when the sweetness comes."
• All the songs on Sugaring Season, including this one are based in nature. Orton told Jam! Music: "I do spend a lot of my spare time in nature, and I did spend a lot of time in Vermont. But also, a lot of it was written dead in the centre of the London. The song 'Last Leaves of Autumn 'was written at the top of Pentonville Road, which leads into King's Cross. It's a very urban area. But I always had a great longing for nature, even in the city. I love trees.