Happy Birthday!

A Gardening Year was born one year ago today. It was something I had wanted to do for a while, but it felt "right" to wait and begin with the new year. Initially, I was writing for an audience of one, myself. I didn't think that anyone else would be interested in my efforts, written or horticultural. How wrong I was! One year later, my blog is read by people not just all over the country but also all over the world.

When I am working in the yard now, I feel I am not alone. There are other gardeners peering over my shoulder, offering advice, cheering my successes and consoling me over my failures. When I am finished working in my own gardens, I stroll through their gardens via their blogs. I've learned so much from those blogs and gotten lots of great ideas from all of the pictures. If you happen to see anything familiar in my gardens this coming year, remember: imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!

Last year at this time, we were enjoying balmy weather. I had snowdrops blooming by the birdbath. The weather is much colder this year, but still warmer than normal. I didn't go outside at all today like I normally would. Someone spilled a drink on the dancefloor last night and I slipped and did something nasty to my hip. Ironically, it's the same leg I injured in the fall down the stairs in October. Once more, I am having difficulty walking around. Age is catching up with me.

Thankfully, I have plenty of seed catalogs to pore over while I recuperate. My favorite, Select Seeds, hasn't arrived yet. I've been looking through their catalog online. I much prefer a hard copy though. And I have been perusing the rose sellers' sites. I've found a new one, High Country Roses. They offer container grown roses, not bare root like I am accustomed to. Does anyone have any experience with them? They seem to have good prices and varieties.

I would like to end this post with a big "THANK YOU" to everyone who has been reading and commenting on my blog. I feel that I have become a member of a very special community of people. I wish everyone the very best in 2006.