PLAN TO PLANT

Well here it is the second week of January, today I thought I would talk a little bit about planning. Now is the time to think about what to plant in your garden this year. I call this preliminary thinking 'plan to plant'.

Know the size of your garden and draw a map of your yard. Include what is already in your yard. It is a good idea to color code the map using a high lighters. Use one color for existing plants and a different color for the flowers, fruits and vegetables you would like to plant. I have garden plans from every year I have planted a garden.

I like to plant most of my garden in rows, so I draw out the rows and write in the names of what I want to plant in the row. Of course it takes several plans or changes in my plan before I have a complete plan. When it comes time to plant my garden, I take this plan on paper with me and make changes if necessary as I plant. I write the name of the seed or the plant on my perfect plan.

This way I know where everything is, what worked, what didn’t and the changes I should make next year. I sometimes take pictures too, so I have a better idea of what everything looks like.

So this week, begin to ‘plan to plant’.

GARDEN DREAMING

January is the month to dream of Gardening. I think I spent most of November and December wishing it was Summer. I think of flowers, vegetables and fruits to grow next year and remember what I harvested. I think of the failures and successes and begin to dream about the next season (always a next year farmer).

I think about the few things I was able to can and freeze for 2009 and I am grateful for the things others taught me about canning. Thanks Nita!!

I have made a few more gardening friends this year. I get very excited to talk to them about gardening, I find I would rather talk about gardening than almost anything.

So this week is the week to prepare for this year’s garden. This week, start to dream about your garden, what to plant and new things to try. Begin to prepare yourself for a successful garden.

Just a few flowers to wet your whistle for your garden successes in 2009.