Dreaming of gardening? It’s not too early to start planning
A new decade of gardening awaits, and this is the time of year when one’s mailbox is overflowing with the bright and shiny 2020 vegetable and flower catalogs from around the country. It is fun to sit by the fireplace or woodstove on a winter’s day and leaf through pages and pages of delicious looking vegetables, beautiful small fruits and tree fruits and a wide array of colorful flowers.
As a gardener, you have many decisions to make while you garden from the comfort of your La-Z-Boy recliner and dream of boundless harvests and beautiful flowers that will grace your table in the coming months. I can almost feel the excitement level building and the anticipation of getting out in the garden growing with each new catalog that arrives in the mail. Since we cannot really be out in the garden (unless you have a high tunnel or have a greenhouse), this is the time to do some serious planning.
The gardening catalogs will have many new and interesting vegetable, small fruit and tree fruit and flower varieties. One thing that you can do now is review your 2019 gardening notebook so you can decide what varieties did well in the 2019 garden. These you will want to definitely grow again in 2020.
Since you have your notebook, you have the names and will not be the gardener who is trying to remember the name of that fabulous tomato variety from last year. It was red, round and tasted oh so good! Then you can decide what new varieties you to test in 2020.
It is always good to test a few new varieties each year to see if any can replace your favorites. This is an important activity in building a good foundation for the 2020 garden. You can review your old garden plan and make a new one including the new varieties that you have selected from the catalogs. Also it is a good time to see what old seed you saved from last year, remembering that seed saved from the previous year may or may not be satisfactory for planting. It depends on the kind of seed and how it was stored.
Most unused seed should be stored in a cool and dry place. Sweet corn, onions and parsnips lose their germinating ability quite rapidly, while other common vegetables may produce good stands after three years of storage. Poor germination is probably the biggest cause of poor emergence in the garden. I would encourage you to buy fresh seeds each year, that way you will not waste your time with potential poor stands. It is probably the least expensive part of your gardening enterprise. So go ahead and place your order.
It is also time to think about how you can improve your garden. Maybe you need to improve your soil by adding compost or setting up a drip irrigation system to water the garden this year. What were the insect and disease problems in 2019 and what can you do to prevent them in 2020? Do you want to expand your garden or reduce its size or rearrange your flower beds?
There are many things that you can do this time of year that will pay big dividends for your gardening experience in 2020. Reviewing last year’s garden notes and planning for this year’s garden are certainly fun activities this time of year when the weather outside is not really conducive to gardening. Also it is a great activity to involve the whole family in, such as what vegetables do each member of the family like or dislike or what flower or small fruit do they like. Remember, it is easy to garden from the La-Z-Boy in the winter months, but in the heat of July an August when the weeds are growing and other activities command our attention it is a different story. Go boldly into 2020!