Has this happened to you? While shopping for plants in the spring, the plant dork in you becomes too loud of a voice to talk down, and you end up with a grouping of wonderful, but completely incoherent, plants. This makes for a garden that is interesting when viewed up close, but as soon as you step back – YIKES! – you are left with something I like to call a design crime scene. This is why January is a useful time to think about your garden in a more calculated, less impulse driven, manner. The snow in your garden provides a clean slate of possibilities, and the fact that you can’t act on any of ephemeral ideas for a few months allows you time to consider your choices more in-depth.
This more intentional way of seeing your garden doesn’t need to be a total buzz kill; you just need to get a few chores out of the way before you start picking plants with wide-eyed abandonment. First, pick a color scheme. You should do this within the context of the larger specimen plants already established in your garden. Next, think about height and various viewpoints. Decide where you need to bring a bang to your garden. Plan wisely and seek plants that will fulfill your practical needs and your most ambitions garden dreams. If you have a long established garden, you’re probably just looking for annuals, bulbs, and a few perennials to fill things out a bit – and this is where you get to have some real fun.
Now it’s time for the catalogues. Seed catalogs, bulb catalogues, garden decor catalogs, bring it on. You have your color needs and your height needs established. As long as you stick somewhat within those parameters, you can let your garden freak flag fly. Take risks, get weird. Most importantly, have fun.
