Compiled by Marsha Mercer, Extension Master Gardener
While winter is rarely conducive to digging outside in the dirt, it can give us time inside to dream and plan. What will you do differently in the garden this year?
We asked Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia to share their gardening resolutions, and their responses range from personal care to gardening more intentionally to help the planet.
Photo © Elaine Mills
So, if you’re up for something new, pick one or two from our list of 25 gardening resolutions for 2025. They’re in no particular order, so be sure to read to the end.
1) Always wear a hat and put on sunscreen before going into the garden.
2) Test my soil, again. It’s been more than a decade.
3) Winter-sow native seeds from back garden. (MGNV will present a Zoom class on winter sowing Jan. 25. A video recording will be posted later on Master Gardener Virtual Classroom.)
4) Give seeds a chance to succeed. Create a space inside dedicated to growing a couple of varieties of veggies from seed to transplant. Set timers for lights and reminders to mist or water. Be hands-on enough to make it a new hobby.
5) Divide and propagate my native plants this spring and share with EMGs and friends.
6) Map my own garden and develop a spreadsheet of plants.
7) Pick up and use free leaf mulch from the city or county for existing and new beds.
8) Ask for advice from other master gardeners and be a good listener.
9) Remove and do not buy invasive plants. Replace any invasives with native plants.
10) Reduce my lawn and use alternative ground covers, such as no-mow grasses.
11) Start a garden journal to better track when to complete certain tasks — and when it’s too late!
Photo © Claudia Castrillo
12) Be more consistent with my vegetable garden journal. If there’s no time to write, take photos.
13) Sharpen and clean old tools.
14) Clean out my garden shed, donate tools and other items that remain unused year after year. Toss any seed packets older than 2022. Throw a seed-sharing party to give away other seeds I won’t use.
15) Expand my container gardening with fun mixtures of edibles and pollinator plants, flowers, and mini hardscapes to create interest and excitement to plain ol’ pots of plants.
Photo © Elaine Mills
16) Install a rain barrel or cistern to capture rainwater.
17) Look into the Alexandria or Arlington Stormwater Management Credit for a reduction in stormwater utility fees.
18) Wear disposable plastic gloves under my garden gloves to keep hands and nails cleaner.
19) Plant two additional trees in the front yard.
Photo © Ellen Levy Finch
20) Start composting.
21) Visit all the MGNV demonstration gardens at least once.
22) Give bouquets of flowers from my garden to any friend who needs a smile.
23) Keep the fun in gardening by not overdoing it, be it planting or volunteering, to avoid burnout.
24) From a master gardener, quoting Angie Lavezzo, former general manager of Sow True Seed: “I resolve to continue to learn new things and to teach what I know.”
25) Remember every day to look up! Gardeners are so accustomed to looking, analyzing, and working in the garden at soil level. There’s a lot of beauty above our heads. Looking up is just an easy-peasy reminder to enjoy the great outdoors. Take a couple of reaffirming breaths skyward!
Happy Gardening in the New Year!
Want to know more about climate-conscious gardening?
Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia has you covered — https://mgnv.org/climate-change/climate-conscious-gardening-checklist-and-more/
For more help on almost any gardening topic, this website is an excellent resource!