Do you have any gardening resolutions for 2015?
Back in December 2013 I vowed to do six things in 2014. Looking back makes for some soul-searching…
grow less food (to eat as much but to waste less) – well I was more selective and grew smaller quantities of things over a longer period, so some progress there..
install a water feature (probably a half barrel) – didn’t manage this one, but a new opportunity has arisen for a possible wildlife pond in the old bonfire area, so watch this space..
stake my herbaceous plants earlier – I did do this, but managed to miss out some important clumps which lolled over in the beds, so extra vigilance required next year..
thoroughly mulch my fruit bushes with well-rotted manure – oh dear, my normal supplier wasn’t available so I had to make do with garden compost and a few bags of (not very good) roadside manure. I noticed (once more) a patch of raspberries (both summer and autumn fruiting) which failed to produce any fruit – maybe it’s time for some new stock?
actively manage my compost bins – I did turn these a bit more and produced a reasonable supply, but could do better..
try to inspire some children and young people to get into gardening – good work here, I think. I helped my local Primary School gain RHS ‘5 star’ status and worked with some challenging students at a nearby High School, where some seemed enthusiastic and interested.
I helped youngsters at Cawston Primary School with their school gardening
So what of 2015?
First, I guess I must roll over the un/part-achieved resolutions from this year and then add…
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Developing my ‘heritage gardening’ skills by contributing to garde development and maintenance at Blickling Hall, our nearby National Trust property, where a 2 acre walled garden is being regenerated.
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Contribute design and other advice to some local projects- e.g. my local Church yard and Primary School.
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Complete the clearance of the woodland edge at Old School Garden and cover this with landscaping fabric to prevent the annual invasion of nettles into the Kitchen garden.
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Design and develop the ‘wild garden’ area to the rear of Old School Garden, tidying up the old bonfire site and adjoining areas (possibly including a pond as noted above).
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Continue to plant up the western woodland garden, including editing what’s already there and adding other plants to fill this out.
How about you?
Part of the gardens at Blickling Hall, Norfolk, where I’m shortly going to start voluntary gardening
Old School Garden 
Thanks for sharing your successes and few failures in your gardening year. I think you have succeeded well in the most important resolution which was to help youngsters with their gardening. You have challenged me to think what I can aim for in 2015. Watch this space. Malc
Hi Malc. Thanks for the kind words and your interest throughout the year. I’m pleased you’ve got something from your visits and all the best for 2015!.
I would love a small water feature but haven’t moved forward and I have several compost piles but don’t reap much gold from any of them. 🙂 2015 needs to be the year ‘to do’ for me. LOL
Thanks for the comment Judy, and all the best for your new gardening year!
I’m glad to see you’re only a human gardener, Nige, like the rest of us. Some of your ‘failures’ sound familiar, like not making the most of composting (as owner of a garden that gets truly inundated with leaves every Autumn, I totally fail to produce much decent leaf mould) or failing to build a water feature (that one’s a perennial but the big patio redesign of 2015 should finally sort it).
But your work with the school kids is brilliant – a few seeds sown there I’m sure!
Thanks Old Nick. I look forward to seeing the Great Patio project completed and with water feature- what do you have in mind?