It is the beginning of the new year and time for resolutions I hear. Have you any for 2020? Here are three garden resolutions of mine.
Remove overly-aggressive plants
1. Remove overly-aggressive plants like Rudbeckia fulgida var. sullivantii ‘Goldsturm.’ Although this was a great plant in my garden when I watered with soaker hoses, it now takes over and crowds out other, more desirable plants. I blame its bad behavior on my having a better watering system. I’ve used drip irrigation since 2008. ‘Goldsturm’ is also only good for skipper butterflies in my garden. Bees like wood bees and honey bees don’t go near it. I am going to keep it in this one terrible part of the garden where very little water and clay soil remain. It’s near the air conditioner so the area is also very hot.
Simplify my plant palette
2. Simplify my garden’s plant palette with more repetition and cohesiveness. This follows on the heels of removing ‘Goldsturm.’ Some of the plants I’m thinking of adding more of are Leucanthemum x superbum ‘Becky’ Shasta daisies. ‘Becky’ likes the same conditions as Rudbeckia fulgida, but forms clumps instead of spreading by runners. I also really like Amazing Daisies® ‘Banana Cream,’ a Proven Winners selection. Both of these varieties do not flop, and they seem impervious to wilt or bacterial leaf diseases. On the other hand, ‘Alaska’ flops. I am removing it from the garden this year too. I’m going to be brutal in my eradication efforts.
Add even more nectar plants
3. Add more nectar plants for short-tongued bees like my honey bees. I already started this resolution in October when Bill and I sowed twenty-five pounds of wildflower seed in our upper pasture. When I walk around the upper pasture for exercise, I can see green sprouts where we tilled, then raked lightly and sowed the seed. We bought our seeds from American Meadows, and the ones we planted were the Texas & Oklahoma wildflower seed mix (10 lbs,) the All Perennial Wildflower Seed Mix (5 lbs.) and the Honey Bee Wildflower Seed Mix (10 lbs.) Let’s hope they continue to grow and then produce lots of nectar and pollen for my bees. I only got four jars of honey last year, but they were so sweet!
Actually, that’s not a bad haul for my second year of beekeeping. I thought the second year was ten times harder than the first. So many things I had to learn.
One of my honey bees on Salvia nemorosa ‘Cardonna.’ 
Salvia nemorosa ‘Rose Marvel’ 
My first honey from my bees in my second year of beekeeping. 
What I hope my meadow will look similar to next summer. A wonderful wildflower meadow with gaillardia and some type of salvia. I didn’t enhance this photo. It really was that shade of blue.
The bees loved Salvia nemorosa ‘Cardonna’ and ‘Rose Marvel.’ ‘Rose Marvel’ bloomed so hard last spring and summer that it about killed itself. I need to go out and check it for signs of life. I’ll let you know.
If you’d like to hear more of my resolutions and Carol’s too, listen to our latest podcast episode. You can catch the Gardenangelists wherever great podcasts are found.
By the way, I’ll be speaking at the Oklahoma City Home and Garden Show on January 17-19. I should have the full schedule in a few days. Look for more information on my Instagram, Facebook and Twitter profiles, and here on RDR too.
Happy New Year and Decade everyone! I can’t believe it’s 2020!
Hi Dee.
Wow! Your 2020 garden resolutions come complete with Visuals…. as should be the case for a year such as 20/20!!! I love your garden already, but those are some great goals to add in. I look forward to seeing your wildflower meadow and love that you are into your 2nd year of bee keeping!
My garden resolutions are:
1. To continue to add more evergreens, so that my neighbors don’t hate my no grass front yard every winter. I live on a normal size lot in Edmond where my shrubs, perennials and grasses all look dead-ish and scraggly, when not in leaf and bloom.
2. To add even more songbird friendly features. More fruiting small trees and shrubs.
3. To change my backyard garden paths from curves to diagonals.
4. To remove all clutter from my outdoor spaces. (Indoor, too…. truth be told.)
Hello Dee! Oh, I have many resolutions for new year! Not only associated with my life but also with my garden. Definitely it is time to lose a few kilograms so maybe the work in my garden will help me! This year seems to be busy for me because I want to build a greenhouse. I know it will be a challenge but it is high time to do it. I want to grow there some ususual plants like this one called kiwano https://gardenseedsmarket.com/kiwano-horned-melon-seeds-cucumis-metuliferus-13-seeds.html . I came across this last year but in the weather conditions I live in it is impossible to plant it in my garden. Greenhouse will be perfect! Wish me a luck!
Monika, I always wish you the best of luck with all of your resolutions!~~Dee
Looking at some past blogs, what do you have as an edging material around your vegetable garden. It appears to be some robust wood of sorts,,if so,,is it functional for you?
Actually, Anonymous, it’s dyed concrete blocks. Yes, it works great. Some of my other gardens have railroad ties.
Numbers one and two are the same on my list. Time to get real!
Oh Linda, I hope I find the time. LOL! ~~Dee
Dee, we have lived in this current house for three summers. We have an acre and a half so for the past summers we’ve had a wildflower area that grows beautifully. The problem is the dreaded Johnson grass that comes up in that area and gets to be six feet tall. Do you have any suggestions for eradicating the Johnson grass without killing everything else?
Hi Stacey, it is very difficult to completely eradicate this noxious weed. I have it in one of my older gardens, and although I use organic practices almost everywhere in my garden, I have spot sprayed glyphosate on this grass while shielding other plants with a large piece of cardboard. I only use a weed killer that has foam so I can see where I spray, and I use a pre-mixed formula. Before this strategy, I once hand digged all of it, but it was too much for me even in this one bed. I know this isn’t a great answer, but part of getting rid of this weed is killing its roots, and I came to the conclusion I had to spot spray. I’m sorry I don’t have a better solution.~~Dee
I love your resolutions, Dee! Your garden is already a lovely haven but I look forward to seeing what happens next! Hugs and Happy New Year, Linda
Hugs to you too Linda! Happy New Year. We’ll see how much I’m able to stick to the resolutions. Ha!~~Dee
Your garden is beautiful. I can’t wait to see posts of your wildflower meadow.
Thank you Denise! I hope it works. ~~Dee
Your flower meadow sounds great. I hope it all works out for you and your bees. As to Garden Resolutions hmmmm. I have several items on my to do list that didn’t get done this past summer. I guess I will say that is what I will be doing. Nothing too exciting, like a flower meadow. I just think that sounds wonderful. I like the looks of that daisy too. I wonder if I have enough sun for it not to flop. I love daisies but haven’t found a variety that performs well for me. Happy New Year.
HA. HA. I can relate to that culling problem. For me it was the pink primroses that I nurtured, but then they took over. Keep reminding yourself that some will live even if you weed others.
In my experience you will need a backhoe to get rid of Rudbeckia Goldstrum! It has serious roots. Good luck.
Hi Gail, you are so right! I won’t ever get all of it. I’ll keep working on it though until they haul me out of here feet first. LOL!~~Dee
Thanks for the good information- I have a new flowerbed ready to plant and 2 new beautiful raised vegetable beds. I can’t wait to see pics of your wildflower meadow!
Hi Rochelle, fingers crossed it all works. We shall see. We’ve had the perfect winter for the seed to do its thing. Now, if we’ll just get some spring rains. We gardeners are always relying on the weather. Congrats on your new veggie beds. I loved raised beds to grow vegetables. They are so much easier to keep tidy.~~Dee