Talking About Resolutions

I have pretty much decided that there really is no purpose to making New Year’s Resolutions. Resolutions are designed for changing behavior, and who of us really wants to change? Yes, perhaps we need to lose a few pounds, quit smoking, or find more leisure time, but is making a promise to ourselves really a way to implement change? Instead, we feel inferior when we find ourselves unable to keep to those promises. So rather than making a list of resolutions for 2024, I am going to make a “to-do” list. Since to-do lists are generally for one-time chores or activities, I seem to have better luck with those. And who can deny the pleasure of crossing something off that list?

My gardening to-do list will start with perusing the catalogs that have already started arriving in my mailbox. (And here I will insert a heartfelt apology to my mail carrier for being burdened with a plethora of catalogs over the last two months. Honest… I don’t order any of them! They just come.) But in January, the clothes and shopping catalogs seem to take a back seat to the gardening ones. And I don’t mind these so much. Some of the seed catalogs hold a wealth of gardening information, including best times to plant, whether a plant needs sun or shade, climate concerns and much more.

I am not one of those patient people who plant seeds in every container possible, starting them under climate-controlled grow lamps. I would much rather leave the hard portion of getting a seed to sprout and thrive to a nursery or grower. But I do like looking at seed catalogs to see the new varieties that have come onto the market since last January. Most of the photos are helpful, allowing for color corrections due to the printing process.

Since I don’t have the temperatures or sun to successfully grow vegetables, I don’t spend a lot of time in that section. It is fun, though, to see what the growers will be offering. As I sit down with the seed catalogs, I turn mostly to the ornamental plants like annuals, perennials, shrubs and trees. And I keep a note pad handy to jot down possible plants to look for when I go nursery-shopping in the spring.

Some of my favorite catalogs are the ones with gardening equipment and supplies. They always seem to have something new come along to make gardening easier. So, I start a wish list for Mother’s Day with these.

Next on my to-do list for the garden is to find a relatively nice day to just walk through and look at what’s going on in the yard. Picking up sticks is a chore that almost always needs done, especially in a yard surrounded by large alder trees. But collecting fallen sticks also gives me a chance to check out the Hellebores that are blooming, look for primroses, or find anything else getting a head start on spring. This is when I add to the to-do list. What needs an extra boost of fertilizer in March? What area of the garden needs more attention? Where will the potted plants do best?

Since I enjoy pruning, that is something that always makes my “Nice Day To-Do list.” On my walk-about, I check, “Anything need to be pruned? When should it be done?” If we are talking about dead or dying branches, that can be done anytime. If we are talking about regeneration, pruning will depend on if and when it is a plant that blooms. I don’t want to be pruning any spring-bloomers now as the blossoms will be lost. If we are talking about things growing too large, perhaps pruning isn’t something we want to do, opting for a move to a better location instead.

Should I find something that needs to be moved, that goes on the Early Spring To-Do List. If weather cooperates, moving a dormant plant in the winter may work just fine. But ideally, I don’t like to move things when torrential downpours or cold temperatures are still a possibility. Late February is often nice enough to transplant and still leaves the spring rains to water the newly-placed plant for us.

Another thing to put on my to-do list is to create a shopping list. One of the joys of Spring is to go plant shopping with a friend or two. It works better if I have a list to take with me so I don’t do too much impulse buying. Although impulse shopping – when I am in a nursery at least – can result in some happy accidents in the garden. The garden still works best when I have had a chance to really think about what changes need to be made… which is another topic for my list: “Changes to be Made.” Thinking what to do in advance – with or without a catalog or book to help – will result in a better end product.

And isn’t that what “Resolutions” are all about?