Planning for the new year.

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Planning for the New Year
This desert gardener no longer waits till just before midnight on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day to make any of those seldom kept resolutions. Instead, when I've got the time I sit down and write or type up a list of things I'd like to accomplish in the coming year. And nowhere in that file or on that piece of paper does it say I have to do any or all of the things I write down. It's nothing more than a list to remind me of things I'd like get done sometime in the future. Not too surprisingly some of the items end up on the list every new year.

Things like lose weight, get more exercise, eat fewer ice cream sandwiches, try growing orchids or African violets, and join a garden club are things I often fail at. Oh heck, let me be honest. I always fail at those five things. The first two you might understand. The third is a personal problem. I'm fond of ice cream sandwiches and I've learned to garden and eat one at the same time. Isn't that what life is all about these days - multitasking? As far as orchids and African violets go - I just don't happen to care for either one as plants although I'm quite fond of the vanilla beans from orchids. And if you join a garden club or any club for that matter, sooner or later, you should get actively involved. That may mean being an officer or maybe producing the club's newsletter or maintaining the club's Web site. If I joined a club, I'd probably have to rename this Web site the The Friendly Gardener and I'm not sure that's me. So now I've made excuses for my failures on the list. Now for some possible successes I plan for the new year and beyond..

On that list might be things like

Build a back yard ramada.
Build a second, less expensive, greenhouse and feature it in The Tucson Gardener.
Have a flagstone patio put in the front yard.
Plant some new mesquite trees to block out the neighbor's junk.
Repair the compost bin.
Make better use of roof and greenhouse rain runoff in the garden.
Prune out all the mistletoe in the trees.
Hire a landscape architect to redesign the back yard just for the experience.
Be a kinder, gentler gardener and tolerate the desert birds and animals that munch a bunch in the vegetable garden and landscape.

I've got a much better chance at accomplishing some of the nine items above because they're actually things I'd like or need to do. I may have to convince my spouse of the necessity and that's not always easy. Anyhow, I've started my list. How about you? Have you made a list of new year, better yet, new millennium might dos?

Let me give you some ideas:

Install a water efficient drip irrigation system.
Get rid of some of the lawn area. How much do you really need anyhow?
Plant drought tolerant vegetation.
Tolerate the neighbor's cat that uses your garden for a litter box.
Introduce your kids to the joy of gardening. Plant a seed.
Visit a nursery instead of the Home Depot the next time you need bedding plants.
Make compost and use it in your garden. It's an exercising way to recycle.
Whether you're a visitor or live here; enjoy, appreciate and protect Tucson's unique desert environment. If you haven't noticed, it's been quickly disappearing under Tucson's growth.

And from one Tucson gardener to another (or any gardener where ever you might be) here's hoping you have a successful and enjoyable gardening year. (2000)