Blooming into 2025: Setting Your Garden Goals with Fostering Blooms

Welcome to a fresh new year with us, Shannon Foster Boline and Caitlyn Blum, your hosts at Fostering Blooms! As the calendar flips to 2025, it’s the perfect time to start thinking about New Year's resolutions—garden-style. Whether you're just stepping into the world of gardening or you’ve got years of green-thumb expertise, setting Garden Goals can rejuvenate your passion and help you plan for a productive year ahead.

Why Garden Goals?

You might ask, "Why set garden goals?" Well, January is the ideal time for planning. The cold weather outside gives us the perfect excuse to cozy up with a hot drink and start dreaming about sunny days surrounded by our favorite plants. We believe garden goals are as important as any other resolution, and embracing them early in the year allows you to prepare both mentally and strategically.

Shannon’s Composting Challenge

Let’s dive into our first goal for 2025. One of my (Shannon's) main missions this year is to master the art of composting. I've been at it for a while, but honestly, I've never felt like I've nailed it. Set at the edge of the woodland, my current compost pile doesn’t get much sunlight—a key component I've learned about. This year, I’m determined to create a two-bin system that rotates effectively, turning garden scraps into rich, nutritious compost.

If you're on a similar composting journey, I've been inspired by a great book which I recommend checking out. Feel free to drop by our show notes for more details. Remember, composting isn’t just about garden productivity; it's an environmentally friendly practice that reflects the cycle of life.

Caitlyn’s Design Intentions

As Caitlyn shares, her focus this year is on intentional garden design. After quickly filling her garden space when she first moved in, she now wants to be deliberate about how each area is structured. From creating a pastoral hillside and a dedicated dahlia and rose breeding patch, to restructuring the vegetable garden, design adds both form and function to our green spaces.

This goal resonates with anyone looking to redo their existing garden layout or those moving into a new space. Taking time to plan can lead to a space that is not only beautiful but also purposeful.

Exploring Propagation Together

Another shared goal at Fostering Blooms is to enhance our propagation skills. Thanks to a fabulous gift—a propagator—I (Shannon) am excited to dive into this fascinating way of multiplying plants from existing specimens. Propagation isn’t just rewarding because it’s budget-friendly; it also gives plants a head-start in adapting to your environment.

We believe garden propagation is perfect for sharing with friends. After all, who doesn't love gifting a new plant or filling their garden with plants that are well-adjusted and thriving?

Succession Planning for Success

Caitlyn wraps up our goal-sharing with a focus on succession planting—a practice she’s aiming to perfect. This involves planting crops in stages to ensure a continuous harvest throughout the growing season. While it's something we've dabbled in, we want to take it a step further and integrate it meaningfully into our garden planning.

Creating a master calendar is our strategy for successful succession planting. Not only will it guide our sowing schedule, but it can also be a valuable resource for you, our listeners. Whether you’re planting potatoes or planning a vibrant vegetable plot, a clear schedule is essential.

Join Us on This Journey

So, what's your garden goal for 2025? We invite all our listeners, from novices to seasoned growers, to set your own aspirations for the year. As a community, we’re here to support each other, share tips, and hold each other accountable.

Stay tuned as we build out more resources, including guides and calendars, on our website to help you thrive. And don’t forget to like, subscribe, and send in any questions or goals you want to share. Together, we'll make 2025 a blooming success!

Until next time, happy gardening!

Ready to cultivate your gardening journey? 🌻 Tune into Fostering Blooms for a wealth of inspiration, expert advice, and heartfelt stories to nurture your love for gardening. Catch us on YouTube and Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Simply search "Fostering Blooms" and join us as we grow together!