New year, new garden

The garden - January 1st

It's cold and snowy today. In other words, it's a perfect day for staying indoors and planning for spring. I've got a stack of seed catalogs to read, and I've begun planning the layout for The Garden - 2014.

I'm not much for resolutions, but I do like the feeling of a new beginning that comes with the new year, and with it the motivation to identify goals for oneself and new things to learn and do. In the spirit of the new year, then, here are my garden goals for this year:

1. Grow more beans. I want enough beans to can. I want to try runner beans. I want to harvest some dry beans.

2. Establish some fruit. I started this in August with a rhubarb plant, but I'm also thinking about strawberries and raspberries. I planted some peach pits this fall, but I know the chances of them growing are slim.

3. Start seeds indoors. This is one of those things that seems very difficult to me, largely because it takes equipment and space. This year I'm going to start small.

4. Chickens. I probably won't actually get chickens this year, but if I'm ever going to have them, I need to start planning. I also need to make sure I leave enough space in the backyard for them.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by K's Garden in 2013, and I wish all of you a healthy and productive 2014 filled with good things from the garden.