Lessons Learned, Flowers Earned: Reflections and Plans for a Thriving Garden Year

As another gardening season approaches, it’s natural to look back on the joys and challenges of the previous year. And let me tell you, 2023 threw my garden a real curveball with record rainfall that tested not only my plants’ resilience but mine as well! But even in the toughest conditions, there are lessons to be learned, flowers to enjoy, and plans to be made for a bountiful new year.

So, join me as I dig into the dirt (metaphorically, of course!) and share my journey.

This post may include affiliate links; you can read my disclosure policy here.

A Year of Watery Woes & Blooming Triumphs

While every garden season has its ups and downs, last year felt like a rollercoaster ride of downpours. The incessant rain presented several challenges:

• Disease pressure: Constant moisture created a haven for fungal diseases, which took a toll on some of my favorite plants.
• Plant struggles: Most of my vegetable plants struggled to thrive in the saturated conditions.
• Drowning seedlings: Starting seeds outdoors proved tricky, with many succumbing to soggy soil.

However, amidst the challenges, there were also victories:

• Hardy heroes: Some plants that ended up thriving. Their lush growth added a vibrant counterpoint to the challenges.
• Experimentation pays off: Some new varieties proved successful in the less-than-optimal growing conditions and I will definitely be planting them again this year.
• Sharpened skills: Adapting to the conditions made me a more resourceful and adaptable gardener.

Lessons Learned from Last Year’s Garden

Victories in the Veggie Patch:

The usually thriving vegetable section of my garden also had its challenges but I did have a few victories too!

Last season I planted a few new vegetables including potatoes, Brussels sprouts, and onions. They all produced a nice harvest at the end of the season and I am going to be planting them in 2024.

To grow potatoes I used these grow bags with various varieties of seed potatoes (I bought them at Walmart)

In the above photo, you can see the potatoes growing in the bags along the fence. They were great space savers too, I tucked them behind this raised bed in what would have been wasted space.

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Another vegetable that thrived in my vegetable garden last year was Brussels sprouts. Even if you aren’t a fan of them I suggest planting a couple because they are super fun to watch grow throughout the Summer.

But my #1 Favorite plant to grow was artichokes!! They are the coolest-looking addition to my garden. The farm around the corner from me sells the plants in the Spring and this was the second year of growing them. I will always add them to my beds from now on.

Even with the excessive rainfall that we had the plants still thrived and developed flowers (the part we think of as an artichoke).

Mixed Beds Are The Way to Go!

One thing that I will be doing in my 2024 garden is to mix my garden beds in the vegetable section of my growing area. What I mean by that is I planted each raised bed with a combination of vegetables, flowers, and herbs. Not only did it make for a cottage feel to my garden all of the beds looked so pretty (even if the growing season was pretty lousy overall!).

In the garden bed above I planted sunflowers, onions, basil, a patio tomato, borage, and marigolds.

From Flops to Future Wins: Addressing challenges and missed opportunities

The most heartbreaking part of last year’s garden was my cut flower garden took the biggest hit from the excessive rain last Summer.

The lack of sun made it slow-growing for all of the annual flowers that I had planted from seed. I planted my zinnia seeds at the end of May but by the end of July, the plants were only a couple of inches tall! Normally it’s about a month from seed to flower.

Once the sun came out in August the zinnias did eventually grow up and flower but the crop wasn’t hardy.

In anticipation of future dried bouquets and projects for the website, I planted 3 beds filled with flowers with the sole purpose of being dried in the Fall.

Sadly, the beds sat almost empty all Summer long because just about everything drowed!! But I am going to try it again this season, so fingers crossed!

Successes in the garden:

Sowing the Seeds of Success: My Indoor Seed Starting Plan

Why start seeds indoors? There are many reasons!

• Cost-effective: You can grow a diverse variety of plants for a fraction of the cost of buying seedlings.
• Unique varieties: Access hard-to-find or heirloom varieties not readily available at nurseries. So many more flowers are available to you when you grow from seed.
• Early blooms: Get a head start on the season and enjoy blooms earlier.

For an in-depth guide on starting seeds indoors, check out my comprehensive blog post here: Seed Starting Basics

However, for a quick refresher:

• Choose your seeds: Select varieties suited to your climate and starting times.
• Prepare your space: Set up a well-lit area with warmth and ventilation.
• Start early: Follow the instructions on how many weeks before planting outdoors to start your seeds based on your last frost date.
• Sow with care: Follow proper sowing depth and spacing recommendations. Every seed packet has instructions on how to grow that variety.
• Nurture your seedlings: Provide consistent moisture and adequate light.

This year I am increasing the amount of flowers that I am starting from seed and also buying a couple more grow lights and adding another table. Today’s LED grow lights are so much lighter than the old-school long bulb ones which makes it more convenient for the home gardener.

Before you start your garden planning check the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map and find your location, that way you will understand your frost dates and when it will be safe to plant outdoors.

Anticipation Blossoms: Seed Selection

Do you have to buy flower seeds online? Definitely not, you can start a beautiful cut flower garden by grabbing seeds at the home improvement store or Walmart.

But the benefit of ordering from a seed company is that you have so many more flowers and varieties to choose from!

There are many reputable resources for buying seeds online but I order from 2 companies that are both local New England businesses.

• Select Seeds
• Johnny’s Seeds

Here is the list of seeds I ordered from Select Seeds. You can see I am planning a wide assortment of flowers for the cut flower garden to use fresh and also plenty of varieties I am planning on growing to use dried next Fall like the Globe Thistle, Love-in-a-Mist, Billy Buttons, and Stawflowers to name a few from my order.

A Final Sprinkle of Inspiration

How do you start your planning? For me, it starts in the cold days of January. As soon as the new seed catalogs are available. Although it’s easy to scroll a website there is something very nice about having a physical catalog to thumb through and mark, plus you have the details of each flower right there. You can request catalogs on most of the seed websites.

Recommended Gardening Books

More Cottage On Bunker Hill Gardening Help

Planning out your garden? You don’t need a fancy planner, just grab a few sheets of graph paper, a ruler, and a pencil and draw a sketch of your garden area to scale.

Start to figure out your garden layout before you actually start the planting. There’s always room for changes before you get outside but this gives you a visual of how much space you have and lets you figure out how to plant each bed.

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I’m excited to share my progress and discoveries throughout the season. Let’s make this year a garden filled with vibrant blooms, delicious harvests, and hopefully a little joy!!

xo, Jennifer