What’s a Gardener to do in January?
by Hilda M. Morrill
During January thaws, I’ve been known to plant bulbs outside in the garden. Hubby rakes the seemingly endless supply of fallen leaves.
Stuck indoors during the cold winter months, we all pay extra attention to our houseplants. Many of us sign up for classes and attend workshops, seminars and lectures. A few are seduced by newspaper ads that promise “up to a 100 pounds of great tasting tomatoes”—indoors, no less.
 However, the majority of us make do with seed and garden catalogs that traditionally appear in full force after the Christmas holidays. It may not be gardening weather outside, but inside where it’s warm and cozy, the garden-catalog season is always in full bloom.
Alas, this enjoyable activity may soon be a thing of the past.
Earlier this week, Garden Writers Association (GWA) colleague Graham Rice (www.transatlanticplantsman.com) noted on his blog that a certain “nursery in Washington State … announced the end of print catalogs.”
Jeff Lowenfels, another friend and a past president of GWA, agrees: “Paper catalogs are disappearing, and we have to adjust.” Little by little, the nurseries are turning to the Internet, though some give their customers the option of receiving a printed copy via snail mail.
Even though “Web sites are the future,” thank goodness my traditional mailbox is still filling up with catalogs, offering everything from seeds and bulbs, to equipment and mini-greenhouses. Now is the perfect time to relax in my most comfortable easy chair with a stack of them and spend some time dreaming about my spring gardens.
It is no accident that January has traditionally been proclaimed “National Mailorder Gardening Month” by the Mailorder Gardening Association. Garden catalogs have always been filled with colorful pictures of new plants and blooming gardens, so they have offered a much-needed emotional boost for gardeners who are longing to get their hands into garden soil and raise another crop of gorgeous flowers and delicious vegetables.
The Association gives us the following advice to get the most from gardening catalogs:
-Use the catalogs as planning tools for your spring garden. Flip through a few catalogs to see what kinds of new plants and products are being offered this year.
-Mark the plants, seeds, preplanned gardens, tools and garden accessories that you’re interested in with sticky notes.
-Go back through the catalogs and review everything you’ve flagged. Make a list of all of the plants and products that you simply must have.
-Place your orders early. The most popular seeds, plants, bulbs and new products often sell out quickly. Seeds will usually be shipped early in the season to give you the option of starting them indoors. Plants will be shipped when it’s safe to plant them outdoors based upon your zip code.
-Keep a list of all the orders you’ve placed so you can track the deliveries as they come in, and file the catalogs in a safe place so you can refer to them later.
We are told that the Mailorder Gardening Association is the world’s largest nonprofit association of companies that sell garden products directly to consumers. For more information, including a list of catalogs and Web sites, a glossary of gardening terms, smart shopper tips… and more, visit www.mailordergardening.com.
Incidentally, Jeff Lowenfels lives in Anchorage, Alaska with his lovely wife Judith. He is the author of “Teaming with Microbes: A Gardener’s Guide to the Soil Food Web” (Timber Press). He is also a columnist for the “Anchorage Daily News” and “Alaska Magazine.”
Jeff is no stranger to the Greater Boston Area, however, as he is a graduate of Harvard University.
We will all have the opportunity to greet Jeff when he comes to speak at MassHort’s Elm Bank in Wellesley on Thursday, January 31 from 7 p.m.–8:30 p.m. on “the basics of chemical-free gardening.” He will also be signing copies of his new book. I understand that his workshop the following day at Garden in the Woods is sold out. You can visit his Web site at www.gardenerjeff.com.
I’m sure that Jeff is highly qualified to tell us what a gardener can do during the cold winter months!
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