I bought a 10X12 greenhouse last Spring. It is still unopened in a big box in the garage. I decided that the project was too big (and complicated) for an old woman like me to do alone. And it sure is in the way in the garage.

My resolution is to hire someone to help me erect it or to try to sell it. I just cannot decide. I even offered it to a couple of relatives free, but no takers.

There is also a metal arbor in an unopened box in the gargage. Same story.

I wasn't posting here in early 2010 so didn't post on that thread... But I did accomplish most of my garden goals for 2010, most notably having the 8' iron tuteur built and installed in the front bed, replacing the New Dawn roses on the south alley arbour and swag with friendlier (no thorns!) clematis, and painting the garden shed (a modest objective but fairly high-impact...)

My resolutions/plans for 2011 are also modest :-) At this point they involve a list of plants that that need replacing with better ones. Currently I'm in the midst of writing a maintenance manual for the garden (for the benefit of DH as well as potentially for a lanscape service should we need one as we age, and ultimately, to leave for a subsequent homeowner when the time comes to sell.) It's turning into a rather large project and a nice review of the garden. I had hoped to have all winter to work on it but have signed up for a 'distance education' course at the University of Guelph. It's a CAD (Computer Assisted Design) course where you get a one-year student license for a commonly used professional landscape design software. That should be fun to play with! The course starts Jan. 11, so now I'm trying to finish my manual before then because I'm not likely to have much time to work on it once the course starts.

My biggest goal this year is to FINALLY retire, and just will have scads of time to work in the yard, right! After 50 years of working, my house, yard, stuff, is in utter chaos, and the big goal this year will be to put some semblence of order to my life. But most important, my husband is very ill and needs me at home with him.

Learning to slow down (not in my nature) will be very difficult, but am determined to do just that.

THEN, more plans for the garden will ensue, can hardly wait!

ogrose

Do I ever have news for you. It will not happen. I mean the organizing and getting the yard tended.

Retirement only gives you more time to go to nurseries, junk stores, and garage sales. There you always find that just right garden plant or decorating item that you immediately put to use with a little WORK or STORE somewhere to use later for that idea in back of your mind.
If you are smarter than me you will not leave it on the dining room table, but put it neatly away. Of coarse when I put things away I immediately forget them.

Then you must join one or two garden clubs and hang out more on the Garden Web. And you will repeat to yourself many times "When did I ever find time to hold down a job?"

Oh so much for resolutions anyway.

My only resolution is not to make any more resolutions. I have a to-do list instead. In early spring I go around the garden and house with a notepad and write my list. This last year I did actually cross off about two thirds of it! But periodically I checked it to see what I should do next, and it did really help me to get the things done that I had planned! And also to see that some of my plans were impractical or not good ideas in the end!

I don't believe in resolutions. Like Mosswitch I choose to create to-do lists and take it from there. Surprisingly, I seem to accomplish everything eventually or change my mind about the rest. Works for me. ;)

Weed the kitchen garden...and plant everything with alyssum! Hopefully, the other gardens won't have so many weeds (no rototilling this year) so I can weed early and the alyssum will help do the rest :)

I'm redesigning the kitchen garden (moving shrubs and fruits) so hopefully that will be done early enough, I can still plant my veggies. Last year, I didn't get the kitchen garden planted in time...one reason for all the weeds.

The other gardens have all turned out very well, so it's mostly putting in more herbs and flowers to discourage the deer. They stayed out of everything, until the lavender died back. If the roses do well over the winter, I may add a little nylon fishing line..so the deer bump their noses and stay out of the roses :)

Good thread, CMK!

Christin, thanks for linking last years resolution post to this one. I had forgotten what I had made a resolution to do. After re-reading the post I DID make many trips to nurseries so I kept that resolution! That is always a very easy resolution for me to keep. I also did divide the daylilies that needed to be taken care of. I had a couple friends come over to help and they went home with scads of daylilies so it was a win-win for everyone.

This year I must make a resolution to NOT visit as many nurseries as years past. I really do break the bank with my garden and should try to control myself a little more.

No other real resolutions or todo lists for the garden though. This may be a year that I just putter about and enjoy the garden more.

-LL, Thanks! ;-) that fishing line idea sounds interesting. Hope it keeps the deer from munching your roses!

-Susan, LOL! That sounds like such a difficult resolution to keep, visiting nurseries. A real chore! ;-D
CMK

I have a few. I am also retiring this year, and I have that new shed to outfit. That is Resolution #1.

I am going to arrange a nice little sitting area under the big oak tree in my garden. Resolution #2

The biggie - I am not going to buy a lot of plans this year, and the ones I buy will have their site ready for planting. Resolution #3 Ha!!! Good luck with that one.

And last of all, the arbor is going up (It's in the basement) and I will cement the birdhouse poles in place and use a level to make sure they are vertical. Resolution #4.

kay

Thanks for linking to last year's list! But, erm, I didn't quite manage last year's resolution, of getting the front yard done. I did get one hydrangea, and a few perennnials, but it really doesn't look like I did much (mainly due to budget). Now we are talking more seriously about cutting down the huge evergreen at the corner, if we can afford it, which would totally change what I can do. And of course, I was reading Remodeling the Not So Big House, which makes me think more about re-doing the front entry. So, while I still really want to re-do the front, I'm not sure how much will get done this year...finances have the potential of continuing to stabilize and improve, but could always de-stabilize, as well, so I'm not really sure what to plan...

natal, " or change my mind about the rest." Works for me, too. LOL

I also work from to do lists. Most items get accomplished sometime during the season.

On my to do list for 2011:
make short brick path from patio to flower bed
move two flower beds (one mostly done this past fall)
Continue refurbishing E side of house border
replace bench

Last year I didn't go to nurseries as often as I have almost all the plants the local nurseries sell (thanks to winter sowing). I missed the wandering in to look for something new and interesting. Think I will be more intentional about making time for browsing in 2011.

I've only got one....grow more vegetables.

Annette

I don't do resolutions but always have a long To-Do list. Haven't actually put it to paper (or computer notepad) yet as I usually do my garden planning in the dull days of January.

Many of the jobs I'll put on the list are things we didn't get done in the last 2 years altho we did do a lot. Decorating my garden house and creating new flower beds around it is high on the list. A good weeding is also as I didn't get much done in the fall. Making lots of compost is always on the list. Not really planning new plants yet as I want to seed more than usual and must wait to see what, if anything, did not survive winter that I want to replace. Need to move 21 lavender plants which I put in a holding bed last spring. Hopefully they all survived altho where they'll all go is yet a mystery. Also will likely need to move one rose that's too close to another larger one. Hope to plant more herbs mixed in with the flowers. I've also been toying with the idea of reducing the amount of grass as we've had drought the last 2 summers - brown grass is not attractive and I won't waste water on it. Might turn some of it into wildflowers and wide mulched paths. Need to get some fill for low spots and topsoil and hire a skid loader to move it around. After that paths, grasses, and wildflowers. This is a 5 year project we started 2 years ago altho it might be turning into a 10 year project!

I always go to nurseries - they are like yard sales, my vehicle just finds them. Fortunately I'm quite thrifty (and the garden beds are full) so *usually* don't go overboard on purchases. All those lavenders were an exception - they were such a good deal! LOL

Eek I really didn't keep mine! Lol I think this year I'll resolve to just relax in my garden more! And show it off. I have only shown it to my mom and best friend, but tend to feel like it's not finished so I haven't let my neighbor or my mil back there to see. I'm not comfortable yet showing it without saying things like , oh this isn't done or it'll look like this... U know? I just have to be proud and enjoy it!
I love these threads this time of year!

To-do for 2011:
Finish veggie/herb garden redesign with pea gravel for paths.
Make two new beds out front by greenhouse.
Enjoy my garden!

And soxxxx, you're right about retirement...to me it was like the most freedom i've ever had. So many places to visit, so many friends to see!

.... unless you type the information in each time you post, if you don't they stay scrambled.
I emailed GW about it so hopefully they can fix it.

Annette

I looked, and sure enough, I had made some resolutions in 2010! And, even though I would have never remembered what they were, I actually did keep most of them.

Didn't get rid of the Bermuda grass (wishful thinking!), but I did take more photos of the garden, started a vegetable garden (small one, expanding it this year), and worked hard to get almost all the beds under control from the weeds.

Didn't start a gardening journal, but I'm considering trying blogger this year as Token suggested.

I have so many for this year - my mind is going crazy with all the possibilities - that I know I won't get half of what I want done, so I'm not going to list my resolutions for this year, as they are not really resolutions, just wishes. I usually have my plans all lined out by now, but we've had such a warm winter, I've been outside more, instead of inside making future plans.

Lilyfinch's resolve to relax more in her garden sounds like the best one to have.

I resolve not to buy more plants than I can get planted in the ground. And I plan to find a place to buy a truck load of good dirt. That has been hard to do around here since gas got so high, loads of dirt have become too expensive.

Soxxxx, where are you located and how much do you want for that greenhouse? I've been wanting a small greenhouse. You can email me.

Susie

I fall into the To Do List camp too. I can't even rememnber what I had for breakfast, how could I remember a resolution I made in January all the way into December? I just spent today filing paperwork for the past 8 years. I found a Christmas card list that I made back in 2007. I haven't sent Christmas cards for about 5 years-so it's not surprising that I only received 4 this year.

My to do lists never extend more than a few days. If I don't get them all done and the same chore keeps coming up on my list, I make the determination that it's important enough to actually do it, and then I put it on DH's to do list.

I am also looking forward to retirement at the end of 2011-I really hate the way this 'working jazz' has been cutting into my leisure time for so many years. The worst part has been spending my work days in a room with no windows. It feels like jail sometimes, not being able to breathe fresh air or see the sun.
Cheryl

'then I put it on DH's to do list.' Ha, ha, that a good one!

I'm right there with you regarding Christmas cards. Keep saying I'll send a note after New Year's but that doesn't get done. DH retired on Dec. 30 and said he's going to send out notes...we'll see.

One more resolution from me!!! If I see a plant I want GET it and stop beating around the proverbial bush telling myself I may find it elsewhere for less. Most times I end up regretting it later when I find out no other place carries it!
CMK

Enjoy my garden more. When I fall in love with a plant I see for sale - buy it! Invite people for "tea and a conversation in a garden" more often. Notice flowers more, and weeds less.
Be happy with however it looks at the time.
~Natalie

I wasn't posting last year, but my resolutions were to:
1. Spend more time in the garden, not just to work out there, but enjoying it (COMPLETE)
2. Design a pretty spot to help hide the utility trailer that we have (COMPLETE)
3. Redo the front fence so the utility trailer isn't sitting on the driveway and in the pretty spot (INCOMPLETE)
4. Fill out back bed with plant materials (COMPLETE)
5. Create a veggie garden (COMPLETE)
6. Gate off around the back of the shed so the dog doesn't run at the garden at full tilt from behind (INCOMPLETE)

Overally, my garden got a lot of use last year. I had tea parties with girlfriends, birthday parties for my hubbie and stargazing parties with friends. I was able to build a veggie garden and with the remaining soil (I way over estimated) was able to build a mimicking flower bed (with no plants yet) on the other side of the patio. I bought over 100 plants to fill in my garden over the year (we have a local grower that sells any plant, all plants for $5 in a 1-gallon pot so I didn't manage to break the bank too badly either). My husband got into the veggie gardening and has told me that it's off limits to me now...LOL

For this year, I want to finish all the things I didn't get done from last year as well as filling in the new patio bed and rearranging my front deck and putting new gardens around it (whether or not I fill them this year is yet to be determined). I have some expansion plans in mind for the back, but again, I'd like to have them dug over in the fall ready to be filled for the next year....excited to see all that 2011 has to offer.

-on_greenthumb, wow!! Seems you guys ended up completing a LOT of projects last year in the garden! I am impressed.
Like the story of your hubby getting into veg gardening so much that he banned you from it, lol! ;-)
CMK

I believe I accomplished most of mine! We moved a year and a half ago, so I was starting with a blank slate. :)

1. Fenced in the cottage garden & moved many, many plahts from the old house
2. Began the veggie garden
3. Added several other shrubs/plants to the general landscape

This year, I'd love to:

1. Fill in some of the gaps in the cottage garden & find something else to use as a focal point. I'd really like a dwarf tree, but I'm not sure I can fit one in.

2. Keep on with the veggie garden & amend the soil some more. would love to get a truckload of manure if I can find it.

3. Contine the fight against the deer! :)

Good idea! I need to add these to a hand-written list as I am a list person too, but never seem to do that for the garden.

1) Take all the lilies out of the window well and replace with native grasses. (Very large window well - about 40 plants.)

2)Complete the butterfly garden - mainly getting the path stones set so they don't keep getting covered up by dirt since they are on a slight incline.

3) Keep filling in with wintersown plants.

4) Clean up the compost area.

5) Find a final solution for the berm. The canna have been very pretty, but need to be dug up each fall and I want to simplify.

6) Get more shrubs and/or small trees.

7) Pick out a new birdbath that was suppose to be my Mother's day present last year.

8) With Wintersowing, seed exchanges, and sharing plants with friends, I can achieve a lot without spending much. (And I have a source for free horse manure that is delivered to me in sacks for easy transport by a good friend and my son picks up free mulch for the city and spreads it for me.) However, my daughter has pointed out that sometimes you need to spend some money to get what you want. So I resolve to spend money on the garden this year if that is what I need to complete it.

OK,I've printed this list as well, so there may be some hope. Thanks for the push.

Mine would be to do all the AWESOME projects I dreamed up last year!

~Annie