Planning comes before planting

In many ways, this is one of my favorite times of the year. For one thing, with the short days and long nights, I tend to get enough sleep. That is something that never happens in the summer when I’d love to be going to sleep before the chickens are ready to come home.

This is the planning time of year, although a lot of thinking goes into that endeavor year round. For example, each week at the market, I make a mental note of what I wish I had and at least one thing I’m glad I don’t have. If you purchase wholesale, the best time to place an order is generally right after that type of thing has had its season. So by this time of year, I’ve already made decisions on many things I’ll be doing new and different this year.

Each year, I try to divide my efforts between things that will sell this year, and efforts that will make live easier in the future. Last fall, we began work on a hoop house and on a new green house. (Neither are finished, but a few warm days this early spring is all it will take.) The orders I make tend to be some items for this year and some that won’t bear fruit (joke alert) until a little longer in the future. This year I’ve got some Triple Crown Blackberries on order and I know just where I’m going to put them. I’ve also excited about the new perennials I’ve chosen. I’ve got foxgloves, moonkshood and new delphiniums on order. I’m not finished with seed catalogs. My overriding concern, is not to overbuy and to keep in mind my spring time constraints. My mother always cautioned me to do anything, not everything.

This is also a time to tackle other jobs. I’ve redesigned this site and added a blog and the ability to pre-order items for market deliver. I’m cleaning out and painting the basement, a boring but necessary job.