Each winter is a time of reflection for gardeners.  Winter is when we have time to think about the previous year’s successes and failures in the garden, and begin to formulate plans to correct any issues or expand on our successes in the coming year.

For me, this year will be like a blank canvas.  We did not have time last year to plant new flowers or vegetables.  All we managed to create was a single raised garden bed for strawberries, and they will do well enough without much intervention from us this year.

I look forward to beginning anew in beds that have rested over the past year.  Most of my plans for the year involve flowering plants, but I would like to create more spaces for vegetables to grow and expand the raspberry patch to account for our growing family.

Each year gives us an opportunity to do better than we did the year before; to stretch farther and push ourselves harder to achieve the perfection we all strive for every year.  Whether it be simply planting more of a flower that thrives in our garden or something more complicated, such as removing a row of bushes we no longer want and replacing them with a new plant, now is the time to make plans for the coming season.

What about you?  What plans do you have for your garden this year? If you haven’t gardened before, this could be the year you try out container gardening and enjoy fresh salad greens throughout the summer.  If you are a veteran gardener, this year might see you adding new rows or trying a completely different gardening method.  Whatever those plans are, I hope you see great success and the energy to see them through.