If I had actually made a list of resolutions at the beginning of last year, I doubt they would have included “Plant my first garden.”
This year, however, I’m feeling the pressure. Not only do I expect to grow things, I certainly expect to have even better luck this time around. After all, now I sort of know what I’m doing.
OK, that’s a stretch, but at least I’m not starting from a complete knowledge deficit. So, with that, here are seven resolutions for the coming year:
1. I resolve to start with spring plants this year, rather than just dropping in the stuff of the August harvest in from the start. I want to eat some home-grown lettuce this time around.
2. If I see good plants at the farmer’s market early in the season, I resolve to buy them right away, rather than hoping I’ll see something just as good later. There will not be anything just as good later.
3. I resolve to plant more flowers to attract more bees. And I resolve to be a little less shocked that I’m becoming a girl who cares about the number of bees in her yard.
4. I resolve to plant any and all zucchini plants in an appropriately-sized space. I will look at the tag that comes with any and all plants, and I will believe them when they say to give the plant two, four or six feet of room. The people who write the plant tags? Generally better schooled in gardening than me, so I resolve to listen to them.
5. I resolve to not forget about any plants on our front porch. Regular readers are probably wondering what plants might have been on our front porch? Well, exactly. You never heard about them, because I rarely thought about them until I just happened to notice they were practically dead.
6. I resolve to grow at least one cool heirloom variety of tomato, probably from the selection at SeedSavers.org. Now that I know where to put the plants, and now that I know that we can not only keep the plants alive, but, in fact, bring them back from near-death, I feel like it’s time to up the ante a little by trying a variety or two not found at ordinary garden centers.
7. I resolve to slow-roast many more tomatoes, whether they’re mine or from the farmer’s market, so I can enjoy tomatoey goodness well into the winter.
The beauty of this list? Unlike most New Year’s Resolutions, I can’t even start on these, much less abandon them, until further into the year. So all of you people who started going to the gym today but will give it up by the end of January, I encourage you to look to me for inspiration…in April, I’ll just be warming up to get these resolutions fulfilled.
It’s either a brilliant strategy, or simply a highly refined version of procrastination.
on Jan 2nd, 2007 at 4:51 am
Mind if I co-opt your list? the only thing I’ll add is to plant more things that attract butterflies. I’ve got plenty of bees — they love the anise hyssop and garlic chives in my herb garden. Happy new year!
on Jan 2nd, 2007 at 7:23 am
Lydia, I completely forgot about butterflies. Ooh…yes…I would like some of those, too. Maybe I’ll have to make a resolution revision…
on Jan 2nd, 2007 at 8:30 am
What an inspired list!
on Jan 2nd, 2007 at 10:54 am
The voice of experience is speaking to you! Your resolutions are all about learning from your mistakes. Hence they are the beginning of wisdom.
on Jan 2nd, 2007 at 11:20 am
I love your list, especially the one about not forgetting about your porch plants. I’m guilty of that one myself!
on Jan 2nd, 2007 at 4:10 pm
I like that you have a few months to go before you can really get started. You will be way ahead of those who join and abandon the gyms this month!
on Jan 2nd, 2007 at 4:25 pm
Great resolutions!! I can certainly use some of those for my own! Happy New Year–and happy gardening.
on Jan 2nd, 2007 at 8:48 pm
Alanna, thanks for your comment!
Kathy, I’m honored you’d even put me in the same thought as wisdom…
Colleen, I probably don’t even deserve to have porch plants with my track record…
Carol, I thought that was a nice way to handle things this year. Why rush into the year?
Sher, feel free to borrow whatever you’d like!
on Jan 3rd, 2007 at 11:21 am
Hi! Your blog is one of those that inspired me to start my own (no, I’m not posting it, it’s way too anemic yet), so let me return the favor.
I’m a member of the Seed Savers Exchange and got a couple of seeds ($60 worth. I’m a little seed-obsessed). And yet I can only use a couple of each as I have a tiny community garden plot. Would you like me to send you a few of some kind of seed you’re interested in to do some seed-starting? It’s not nearly as intimidating as it sounds, you can wintersow a whole bunch (which means sticking it in the ground now, as if it were dropped there by an old dead parent plant, and letting it start on its own) and see what happens. If you’re interested, drop me a line.
Anyway, thanks a lot for the awesome reading!
on Jan 3rd, 2007 at 7:55 pm
Plot, that’s a very intriguing idea! Check your mailbox very soon…I’ll be in touch!
on Jan 5th, 2007 at 2:32 pm
How about a compost pile? I learned about them in Andorra and have faithfully kept one here. Once you get in the habit there incredibly easy.
on Oct 17th, 2007 at 8:42 am
[...] Hmm. I sense the start of a 2008 Resolutions list. [...]