For the new year, professionals vow to work smarter, not harder
We gardeners always vow to make the new year our best yet.
The pros are no different — when I asked for their new year’s resolutions, this group had plenty to share.
If you’ve started planning your 2018 garden, see whether you can glean some ideas or inspiration from what the experts have resolved. (All participants responded by email.)
Michelle Gervais author and horticulturist at John Scheepers Beauty From Bulbs, Connecticut
■ “I will rake up every lingering dead leaf and branch BEFORE I do the fun spring stuff, like shopping and planting.”
■ “I will remember to fertilize my containers. They do so much better when I don’t starve them!”
■ “I will order more mulch than I think I could possibly need. Really, you can never have too much mulch.”
■ “I will buy plants in multiples! I’ve suffered from ‘one-of-each-itis’ for far too long.”
Karen Langan co-owner with her husband, Mark, of Mulberry Creek Herb Farm in Huron
■ “I don’t have any particular plant species that
I am seeking to add to our unwieldy collection of herbs, succulents and veggies — rather, a renewed interest to keeping our greenhouses and gardens simple and clean.
“In life, in our business and in the environment that we take care of, my husband and I have a tendency to add on several new ideas each season. Innovation and retooling is not a bad idea, until it results in going in 100 directions at once.”
■ “This is my year of pruning. I plan to cut out the parts of my life and business that take more time than they are worth and the directions that zap the life out of me. I keep the treasures and focus on my core values, knowing I’ll gradually add new ideas in the future.” Bobbie Schwartz author and landscape designer in Shaker Heights
■ “Keep looking for small to medium flowering shrubs that also have interesting foliage and/or bark to extend the seasons of interest. I want to substitute them for some of the perennials that I love but are high-maintenance.”
■ “Try not to purchase plants, no matter how wonderful they sound, unless I know exactly where they will be planted.”
John Whitman author and cold-climate gardening specialist, Minnesota
“Last summer we lost ■ an enormous silver maple. While mourning the loss of the tree, it opened up a wide area for an assortment of sunloving plants. My resolve is to replace my grief with a garden consisting of one focal point, such as a small tree, perhaps a serviceberry, surrounded by a combination of colorful perennials and plants with interesting texture.”
■ “I am also in the process of a continuing resolution to reduce my use of the rototiller as a way of loosening soil. It was necessary, in my opinion, to break up the clay soil in our area, but I have constructed a number of 10-inch raised beds, mixed copious amounts of organic matter into the soil, and covered the beds with a thick mat of leaves.
“Worms love leaves, and this winter covering, combined with shredded leaves as a mulch next summer, should encourage a much larger population of worms. I’m resolved to let them take over the work of breaking up the soil as much as possible while the rototiller sits idle.
“Lots will depend on my patience, which I also am trying to improve as a new year’s resolution.”