What Do You Want?
Sometimes, just knowing what you want is half the battle!
I want a cutting garden, a pollinator garden, a vegetable garden, and to gardenize what we lovingly call our “Japanese garden” even though it only has a couple of trees that could remotely count as Japanese, and isn’t yet a garden. Looking at that list, it’s fair to say my aspirations exceed my energy.
What’s my priority? The vegetable garden. I ordered seeds last weekend. Now I need to identify what to start in a cold frame, what needs raised beds, and what can go directly into the casually amended rows that gave us such a wonderful bean crop last summer.
Beyond that, I’m on the fence.
I’m currently reading Floret Farm’s Cut Flower Garden, by Erin Benzakein and Julie Chai. It has a wealth of information that certainly is influencing my wish list. I finished reading the “Spring” section last weekend and, with four inches of snow on the ground, just started the “Summer” section. I’m diligently taking notes of what to plant and when, and how to maximize the blooms per square foot in a compact space.
For my wants, a 3 x 10 foot plot will do. That’s enough, I understand, to provide three seasons of flowers that I can cut for bouquets without feeling I’m denuding the landscape. But, where to put it? Can I use a series of window boxes for the wildflowers? Should I just create a raised bed near the vegetables? Maybe a mix…
Then, there’s the pollinator garden. Our honey bees, you see, don’t seem to like the apple and cherry blossoms near their hive. They’re not fond of the lavender, either, although the native bees love all three. So, if we ever expect to harvest honey – assuming the bees survive this winter – I think they need a different food supply.
Nonetheless, I want to support our native bees and hummingbirds. That means selecting, especially, flowers in the blue, purple and yellow ranges, in a variety of shapes, and clustering them together. Flowers that are open – petals around a central disc – make it easier for bees to reach the pollen. Likewise, trumpet-shaped flowers are good for hummingbirds. Herbs, including basil mint, oregano, cilantro and thyme are pollinator favorites, too. For this garden, whatever I select, the plants need to bloom throughout the growing season to provide ample food.
The so-called Japanese garden, well, that was a dream one of our sons started. Then he moved 1,400 miles away. The spot he picked out features a meandering path (not yet leveled or graveled) past a series of redwood trees, a three-season marsh with islands of bear grass, and a few ornamental trees he planted a few years ago.
Turning this into a garden of any kind will take a bit of sculpting and a lot clearing, which is one of the reasons it’s taken so long. We could leave it, or…I could plant a few things along the edges of the entrance, a garden room of sorts that’s already well-defined. Species tulips or daffodils for naturalizing, perhaps.
First, we probably should simply concentrate on expanding the area by clearing out the encroaching blackberry vines! (Not fun, but doable.)
So many projects, so little time! That’s actually one of the things I love about living in the country. With plenty of space, there’s lots to keep us busy. I say “us” because I fully expect to rope my husband and other son into some of these projects (not that they don’t have enough to do, themselves, mind you).
I’m still enjoying the recent snowfall, even as I’m planning ahead to spring. I think, though, that rather than daydream about what I want, I should put pen to paper and make a plan. I’ll pick a garden, decide where to put it, and detail exactly what should be in it. That’s the way forward.
Deciding exactly what you want is the first step towards getting it. The second is deciding what you, yourself, are willing to do to attain it.
So, I have a question. What do you want this year, and what steps are you taking to get it?
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