Winter is for garden dreaming

Poinsettia at the U.S. National Arboretum

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The drab winter is made tolerable for me by garden planning. The possibilities for my little urban yard are endless in January and February! Planning is really valuable because you will be prepared for when the growing season is in full swing. You really can’t make up too much time if you start your seeds too late. I speak from experience, it happens to me every year. But I have gotten better and you can, too!

January and February are all about aspiration. I know you have a mental image of what you think your garden looks like in mid-summer—flowers in bloom, vegetables on the dinner table every night. Hold onto that! With a little planning and organization, we both will get a little closer to the dream in 2019.

My inspiration comes from a lot of places all year long:

• Botanical gardens and arboretums
• My neighborhood – if they can grow that, I should be able to
• Public gardens and parks
• Garden centers and nurseries
• Garden and house tours – these usually start up in the spring
• Seed and plant catalogs
• Blogs, websites and social sites –I shared a few of  my favorites at the end of this post. Share your favorites in the comments.
• Books at the library – FREE resource
• Local garden clubs
• Gardening events – Coming up in late January/early February is National Seed Swap Day. These events are held all over the country (and worldwide), they are usually free and I have even seen swaps done my mail.

Take notes

I also keep a garden notebook (or journal) and take lots of photos. My notebook is where I take notes when I see a speaker, keep dates of when I have started seeds (indoors or out) and when they started to sprout, what variety of vegetables I planted where so I can keep track of what did well and what did not. I keep notes of seasonal tasks and reminders to move this bush there. It is so helpful with planning because I like to know what plants were successful and, more importantly, what was not so I can address why and try to make conditions better the next time. Growing things is full of failures, but it’s the trying that I focus on.

This is the first in a series about garden planning. So check back, share your experiences and Merry Christmas.

The U.S. National Arboretum is a place of inspiration for me, especially the grounds in the spring, summer and fall. And they do Christmas right! Those hanging poinsettia are glorious.

Social Media Resources

I primarily use Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest for gardening and growing inspiration. I follow gardeners from all over the globe, organizations, publications and retailers. If you have a favorite social site, feed, blog, web site, Facebook group, etc., please share in the comments.

Instagram

Primarily a photo sharing site. Advancingtheplot is my account. You will see the gardeners who I am following there. IG hashtags: #garden #gardendc #flowers #instaflowers #growyourown #gardenchat (there are about a zillion hashtags on Insta).

Twittter

I like Twitter because I can see and share photos and videos, and also very easily follow a link to a web site (not so easy on Instagram). Find me @AdvncingThePlot. Two of the hashtags that I follow on Twitter are #gardendc and #gardenchat.

Pinterest

Another photo sharing site and it’s easy to share additional information. You can set up any number of themed “boards” to collect your “pins” for future reference. Check out my Gardening for Regular People board. I have a few other garden-themed boards that you will see there, too. Based on what you look at, Pinterest will also suggest content.

Composting for Small, Urban Yard

A few years ago at Rooting DC, a fantastic urban agriculture event in Washington, D.C., I was inspired to start composting. My clay soil really needed help and the organic matter that compost added would help with drainage, aeration and tilth (the soil’s ability to grow plants). And I would be helping to decrease waste added to the county landfill. According to “The Maryland Master Gardener Handbook,” municipal waste is comprised of 13% yard waste, 12% food waste and 34% paper, and those are all things that can be composted. What did I have to lose?

I was familiar with composting but was a little intimidated because I thought it was really complicated. My first interaction with serious composting was during my days in the Newark Street Community Garden in northwest D.C. There was a “compost committee” and strict rules for where to put your garden waste, what to put on the pile, and which ripe compost pile to use on your plot. It was a little intimidating! And before seeing those presenters, I felt like I could not have a successful compost pile in my small urban backyard-where would I put it? wouldn’t it attract mice and rats? doesn’t compost smell bad? I had put it off out of fear.

But that day at Rooting DC I decided I was going to try it. Here’s how I did it.

Step 1-Gather your materials

·         Large storage tub with a secure cover. You can buy one at a big box store or try your local thrift store. Also, your town or county may have free or low cost bins available for residents.

·         Drill with LARGE drill bit.

·         Pitch fork.

Step 2-Choose your location

·         Shady spot

·         Near the door so it’s not a pain in the neck to go outside, especially in the winter, to make a deposit

·         Close proximity to where you will be using the finished compost

·         Somewhat out of the way for aesthetics

Step 3-Drill baby, drill!

·         Compost needs air so drill lots of holes on all sides of the bin, including the bottom and the cover.

Step 4-Start composting

·         Start filling the bin with kitchen scraps (green matter) and yard waste (brown matter).

·         Turn the compost weekly.

·         If conditions are dry, you will need to water your compost occasionally to keep it alive.

Step 5-Spread your compost

How do you know it’s “done”? At some point you will have to stop adding scraps to your bin in order to have finished, useable compost. It will be dark in color, smells like fresh earth (mmmm) and the particles are all broken down and unrecognizable. Repeat Step 4.

What to Compost

Kitchen scraps, dead leaves from houseplants, rotten stuff in the produce drawer, dead plants, orange peels, apple cores. Paper egg cartons, plain (uncoated paper), egg shells, coffee grounds and filter, tea bags. You will get the hang of collecting your compost “food” very quickly. There is so much waste every day that can go in the compost bin.

What NOT to Compost

Dairy, bones, fat, salt, pet waste, cooked foods, meat, peanut butter, oil.

Composting is easy, suitable for a small yard, practically free and your garden will see a tremendous benefit. Don’t put if off any longer, no matter what time of year. I am so glad I broke through my fear and you will be, too! Share your experience or ask questions in the comments below.

Composting Resources

University of Maryland Extension 

EPA

North Carolina State Extension

Put your out-of-place pumpkins to good use

Now that Christmas decorations are up in the house and the light extravaganza is plugged in outside, the pumpkins I bought before Halloween seem out of place in my yard. Remember when you were ready for fall? I was so excited back in early October to find the right size, shape and personality of the pumpkins that I was going use to decorate. Alas, pumpkins and Santa do not mix.

There is a Reddit group for photos of squirrels eating things - thanks for the pic!

Put those pumpkins to good use! I smash them open for the birds and squirrels to eat the seeds. Then you can put the orange carcass in the compost bin or, as I do, just leave it out on one of the flower beds to decompose. By spring it will be completely gone and the soil will have some new organic matter to start the growing season.