Plan Your Best Garden Ever!

Get started today with these 50 expert tips

By Teri Dunn, Gloucester, Massachusetts

It's almost time to start making those gardening resolutions. You may miss the garden you had last year...or miss the garden you wish you had. But winter's respite is not the time for regrets. Instead, make good use of the off-season. Grab pencil, paper, gardening magazines and seed catalogs, and make your dream garden a reality!

To help you along, we've compiled some useful tips. As you imagine your future garden, bear in mind the wisdom of this old saying: "Don't work harder—work smarter."

How to use these tips:

Don't worry about trying all these ideas or using them in order or in the winter months. Springtime's arrival in your area and the scope of your plans will guide you to the ones most useful to you.

1.

Set aside a large-format wall calendar just for gardening notes. Use it for goals, several-step garden projects and timely reminders.

2.

Shop early for containers, well before buying plants to fill them. There will be a bigger selection, and you can make cool-headed decisions.

3.

Inventory your seed stash. Improperly stored seeds may have dried out and should be discarded. Be sure to store seeds in an airtight jar in the refrigerator.

4.

Clean your hand tools now, while you have time. Chip off encrusted dirt and rub with a damp rag. Then wipe cutting surfaces with an oily cloth.

5.

Review plant information in catalogs and gardening magazines. Resolve to try something new this year, and decided now where it will go in your garden.

6.

Cruise through catalogs with a marker and/or yellow sticky notes, flagging everything you might want to order. You can always pare down the list later.

7.

When ordering seeds or plants via mail order, fill out the order form (even if you intend to call in your order or use the Internet). This way, you are prepared and the process goes quickly.

8.

Place orders early, before the companies get busy. These get filled faster, plus you can get exactly what you want, thus avoiding substitutions and rain checks.

9.

Stockpile soil amendments. Order or buy loam, compost and mulch weeks before you need them. When you do, they'll be there.

10.

Plan new beds and borders on paper. The drawing doesn't have to be sophisticated or perfect, though you should aim to make it to scale.

11.

For new plants, always research "mature plant size." Of course, results may vary in your garden, but it's still important to know what to expect to allow for enough space.

12.

Call your nearest cooperative extension office and ask when the last predicted frost-free date is, or check on-line. This information will help you calculate how early to start seeds indoors.

13.

Start seeds of some of your favorite veggies and annuals indoors several weeks or months in advance. This way, seedlings can go right into the garden without delay when conditions are warm enough.

14.

Sketch a new plan for your vegetable garden. It's important to rotate crops in order to thwart plant-specific pests and diseases. It also gives the soil a break because different plants use more or less of certain nutrients.

15.

If you're planning a big garden installation this year—a water garden, a gazebo, a pergola—research what's involved. Also, line up contractors in late winter (before they book up).

16.

Tour the yard with a sharp pair of clippers. Make way for new growth be removing deadwood, winter-damaged branches and suckers. If in doubt about whether a branch is alive spare it for now.

17.

Feed developing seedlings with half-strength plant food every week or so. Proper care means more robust plants, improving their chances of survival when they finally move outdoors.

18.

Plant bare-root shrubs and perennials earlier in the spring than container-grown plants. Bare-root ones are still dormant or just waking up and can make a gradual transition to garden life.

19.

How do you know when it's okay to start planning? Check the soil—just scoop up a handful and squeeze it. If it's wet and soggy, wait a bit longer. If it crumbles in your hands, it's time.

20.

Help acclimate young plants before they go into the ground. Set pots and flats in a sheltered spot (under a tree, on the porch) and gradually increase light received for a week or so—bring them in at night or cover them if frost is predicted.

21.

Lay a garden hose on the ground to visualize the size and shape of a new garden bed. Leave it in place for a few days, so you can observe it from various angles and at different times of the day (to check sunlight).

22.

To plant a shrub or rosebush, dig a hole that is the same depth as but wider than the root-ball. Backfill with a mix of organic matter and existing soil.

23.

When buying perennials or annuals, resist the temptation to get blooming plants. A strong root system is much more important and will soon generate good top growth and flowers.

24.

Get in the habit of creating a basin around the outer edges of every plant you install, large or small. When you water, precious moisture won't drain away but will go right to the root zone.