Given my preference for long days spent in the garden, December 21 is always cause for celebration. That’s because from that point forward every day will get just a little longer. And with the return of the light, my mind is filled with thoughts of the garden and plans for what the New Year will bring.

If you’ve been following this blog, you know that every year I post my New Year’s resolutions for both my individual and clients’ gardens. So without further ado, here they are below.

1: ADD MORE NATIVE PLANTS TO MY GARDENS

Given our changing climate, environmentally-responsible, sustainable landscapes are becoming more and more in vogue. As a result, you can now find more native species for sale at the nursery. These plants tend to look a little less ‘finished’ than what we are used to, but the flip side is that they come with many benefits.

Not only are native plants more hardy (since they are evolved to local conditions), but they also require less watering and fewer pesticides and fertilizers. Moreover, they provide food and habitat to birds and other local wildlife.

Blue cardinal flower, Lobelia siphilitica, is a native plant of Maryland

This year, I resolve to learn more about my area’s native plants and add a few new species to my gardens. 

2: LEARN TO IDENTIFY THE BIRD CALLS IN MY GARDEN

Most of us love birds, but can we name the ones visiting our garden? The legendary Ted Parker, who was known for his ability to identify thousands of birds by their songs alone, said

“Birding in tropical forests by sight alone is like watching the news on television with the sound turned off – you’ll miss most of what’s going on.”

The vireo is a small songbird native to Virginia

This year, I resolve to learn a handful of songs and begin building my birdcall repertoire. If this sounds like a good idea to you, too, writer Kenn Kaufman of Audubon News has some great suggestions for how to do so, including online bird guides, free ID apps and some good old-fashioned books.

3: GROW MORE ANNUALS FROM SEED

Until last year, (when I and my team were growing massive amounts of zinnias for a wedding), I had had little experience with growing plants from seed. Truth by told, I was afraid of the whole project. Something about laying those tiny kernels in the potting mix shook my confidence in my own planting abilities.

But thanks to our efforts, I and the rest of my team (who were not afraid), were rewarded with hundreds of beautiful plants by mid-summer. Moreover, they were varieties that weren’t available at local nurseries. This helped me realize that growing plants from seed is not only economical, it opens up a whole new world of planting possibilities.

This year, I resolve to grow more annuals from seed to supplement the other plants in my gardens. 

4: TRY SOME LESSER-KNOWN ALLIUM SPECIES

While the huge purple globes of Allium ‘Globemaster’ get all the glory, there are many other spectacular allium species that bloom all through summer right up to the first frost. These include the mid-summer flowering Blue Globe Onion (Allium caeruleum) Stars of Persia (Allium cristophii) and adorable Drumstick (Allium sphaerocephalon), to name just a few.

Adorable, summer-blooming Allium ‘Drumstick’

In the fall, I resolve to plant a bunch of these other, lesser-known species to enhance the show in my 2021 garden.

5: ADD POT RISERS TO MY OUTDOOR CONTAINERS

For some time, I’d been watching moss slowly form a carpet under my flower pots. I knew I needed to add some pot risers, but hadn’t found any that didn’t detract from the look of the container. That is, until Julie Friedman of Exteriors Landscape Design recommended some invisible flower pot risers called LIFT MY POT. Made out of heavy black rubber, the round risers got the job done while completely disappearing from view. 

I resolve to order more of these risers for the rest of my pots (and my clients’ pots) next season.

6: GET NEW PRUNERS AND TAKE BETTER CARE OF THEM

It seemed like fall 2019 was a time of garden rehab for my business. In early December, we hand pruned a large number of overgrown shrubs on two separate properties. One of my team members is an accomplished boxwood pruner (having apprenticed at the historic Georgetown estate called Dumbarton Oaks). Watching his technique as well as the tools he employed inspired me to come home and coax all my own boxwood into spheres. For a perfectionist like me, it was a deeply satisfying experience.

However, as we all know, good tools make a job more enjoyable and over the years, my tools have suffered much neglect. This year, I resolve to take better care of my pruning shears (perhaps buy some new ones) and keep them in clean and sharpened condition.

7: PLANT GOLDEN RASPBERRIES

There are raspberries and then there are raspberries. Two years ago, a client of mine introduced me to the golden kind. Milder than their red cousins with a fuller, sweeter taste, they are the perfect summer snack right out of the garden. Golden raspberries come in both summer and fall-bearing varieties. including ‘Honey Queen’, ‘Fall Gold’, Golden Harvest’ and Anne’.

Golden raspberries

This year, I resolve to add a small hedgerow of golden raspberry plants to my garden.

8: PLANT A HYDRANGEA HEDGE

Almost nothing speaks ‘garden’ more than a long line of hydrangeas, the quintessential summer hedge. Yet many people opt for a single specimen or just a few, missing out on the grand statement these dramatic shrubs can make in a mass.

Although I’m partial to the old-fashioned, part-shade mophead varieties, my favorite easy-care species for full sun is the limelight hydrangea.

Hydrangeas have the biggest impact as a hedge

This year, I resolve to make a grand statement and plant a limelight hydrangea hedge along the brick wall in the back of my garden.

9: GET A BETTER HOSE

Don’t we all wish for a better hose? I’ve tried them all from the rubber to the cloth. They’re either too heavy, always crimping, or just don’t feel right in my hands (like the accordion models in rubber or cloth). Luckily the wirecutter examined a bunch of them and came up with some recommendations. In 2019, they concluded that the neon green Flexzilla was the most kink-resistant material they tested. It lay flat and twisted and turned more easily than the others.

The lime green Flexzilla garden hose

I resolve to experience the joys of watering again and buy a Flexzilla garden hose for 2020.

10: PLANT MORE GRASSES 

Not everyone is a fan, but the facts are things are getting drier. If you want to save on irrigation and not worry if your plants will die over vacation, grasses are the ticket. That’s because, unlike more shallow-rooted perennials, grasses have long roots that penetrate deep into the soil to capture water other plants can’t reach.

Pampas, maiden and purple fountain grasses are all dependable garden denizens. But nowadays there are so many other exciting options available (including many species that come in more manageable sizes.) These include Little Blue Stem, Purple Moor Grass, Blue Oat Grass and Pink Muhly Grass, to name just a few.

Blue fescue is a great, small sized grass with silver-blue foliage

This year, I resolve to expand my grass library and add some unusual specimens to my garden. 

Wishing all of my readers a wonderful New Year and successful 2020 season in the garden!