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 ello fellow Earthlings, and seasons greetings to all
of you. As the days get shorter and our gardening time is either
eliminated because of cold or because we're just too busy making
sure that our other family members have a happy holiday season,
take some time to think about the garden. Let's take a stroll
to the kitchen drawer where all of those catalogs we never read
during the growing season are stored.
 This
time of year we often find ourselves occupied with thoughts of
menorahs, Christmas trees, and twinkling lights. I find that
when I have a moment to myself during this time, it is always
good to have a plant, tool or seed catalog handy to remind me
of warmer weather and the peace of the garden. Reading these
catalogs also gives me ample opportunity to put my wish list
together so Santa knows exactly what I could use in the following
spring. Just imagine hoeing weeds with that new one that Santa
got for me from A.M. Leonard, or pruning fruit trees with my
new Felco pruners that were in my stocking from Smith Hawken.
It makes me wonder why everyone doesn't garden. Subtle hints
are easy with catalogs. Just lay the open book around with a
big red circle drawn around the items you think "Santa"
should know about.
The Jackson
and Perkins rose catalog is another one of my personal favorites.
I love to visualize new additions to the garden, and the same
strategy works on "Mr. Claus" or any of his elves that
may see the open catalog. I love this time of year! Isn't it
great when you find out that luxury item you had been wishing
for just shows up at the doorstep or under the tree?
While the
weather or lack of time prevents us from enjoying our passion,
it is a comfort that these colorful and descriptive catalogs
are available to keep us in touch with the amazing bounty of
the garden. Bundling up and visiting the garden to see how things
are sleeping is also a very good project if time allows in the
winter. I like to go out and imagine the bulbs popping through
the mulch layer with the first promise of early spring color,
or think about the blaze of color from blooming fruit trees.
I often find that this is the time of year when I accomplish
a lot of gardening projects not directly involved with plants.
Sharpening tools, getting the mower tuned up and getting the
blades sharpened, as well as sorting out seeds and seed starting
stuff are all fun projects. These are also the chores that we
never seem to get to during warm weather while the garden beckons
us to come and play.
Winter is
a time of year when we can most appreciate our efforts of the
previous growing season. Nothing tastes better than a holiday
meal seasoned with dried herbs from our gardens or the frozen
marinara sauce we made from our homegrown tomatoes. Gardens can
be an incredible conversation topic when a guest asks about the
amazing flavor of that pasta sauce. It is a lovely thing to reminisce
about the garden or to romanticize about how big the tomato plants
were that produced the sauce. These conversations evoke thoughts
of warm weather, quiet days in the sun and lemonade, no matter
how chilly, rainy, or frosty it is outside. I just love hearing
the oohs and ahhs of people envisioning a garden full of healthy,
nutritious food and colorful flowers when it's bloody freezing
outside.
Oh, did I
forget to mention I love this time of year? Next time we will
be discussing some helpful tips on getting your garden tools
ready for next season. I wish you all a Happy Chanukah, Merry
Christmas, Joyous Kwanzaa, and an amazing millennium celebration.
Be safe, be happy and I'll see you in the Garden in the next
millennia! 
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mill.net. Don Trotter's Natural gardening columns appear nationally in environmentally sensitive publications. Look for Don's book Natural Gardening
A-Z from Hay House at bookstores everywhere and at all online
booksellers and check out Don's columns in Hearst's Healthy
Living Magazine coming this March.